The governments of nearly every major economy are pouring tens of billions of dollars into semiconductor industries every year. This Comment explores why governments see semiconductors as a strategic technology, and the tactics governments are using to shape the semiconductor industry.
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Miller, C. Global chip war for strategic semiconductors. Nat Rev Electr Eng 1, 2–3 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44287-023-00005-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44287-023-00005-6
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