Micron breaks ground on $100 billion New York semiconductor factory

Micron Technology, Inc. broke ground January 16 on its latest factory, a $100 billion four-fab semiconductor plant in Clay, New York. In a statement, the company said the factory will be the largest semiconductor factory in the United States once it comes online: Micron says it expects production to start in 2030.

It’s not clear how many employees the finished lab will employ. Micron says the project as a whole would create 50,000 jobs in central New York but did not specify how many would be temporary construction jobs as opposed to permanent factory positions.

In addition to the new factory in Clay, the Boise, Idaho-based computing company plans to spend $200 billion on two new high-volume fabs in Idaho and an expansion of its existing Virginia fab. In its statement, Micron said it had received financial support from federal, state and local levels, including up to $6.4 billion in direct funds from the CHIPS Act for its Virginia expansion and new fabs, a $5.5 billion contribution from the state of New York and a $500 million community investment from Empire State Development.

The event included commentary from a host of tech CEOs as well as federal and state officials from both parties. Jenson Huang of Nvidia, Thomas Kurian of Google Cloud, Tim Cook of Apple, Satya Nadella of Microsoft, Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Michael Dell of Dell Technologies, Matt Garman of Amazon Web Services, Lisa Su of AMD and Rene Haas of Arm represented the tech industry: Their remarks, except for Cook’s, often emphasized the importance of computer memory for AI applications.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, and EPA Administrator Lee Zelden cast the event as a coup for President Trump’s efforts to reshore manufacturing, while New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative John Mannion framed it as a significant development for the state and referenced the CHIPS Act passed under President Biden.

What People Are Saying

“Breaking ground at Micron’s New York megafab underscores our commitment to building leading‑edge memory at scale in the United States,” said Sanjay Mehrotra, CEO of Micron Technology. “Our investments in New York will create economic prosperity and further strengthen Micron’s leadership in advanced memory technology.”

“As AI transforms every industry, advanced memory has become essential,” said Jenson Huang, CEO of Nvidia. “By bringing manufacturing to the U.S., Micron is strengthening America’s AI infrastructure and supply chain resilience to power the next wave of AI breakthroughs.”

“Today’s groundbreaking is more proof that American greatness is back,” said U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. “Under President Trump, we’re done outsourcing our future and, instead, we’re building it right here at home. Micron’s investment in New York means tens of thousands of great American jobs and strong supply chains finally back in the USA. We are committed to bringing back American leadership in semiconductor manufacturing.”

“Micron breaking ground in Central New York marks the transition from promise to progress on one of the most significant economic development projects in our state’s history,” said New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. “More than just constructing a state-of-the-art chip fab and the nation’s largest clean room — we are building opportunity for generations of New Yorkers. This historic investment by Micron and my Administration cements Central New York as a global leader in advanced manufacturing, creates tens of thousands of good-paying jobs, and proves that when government and the private sector work together, we can bring critical industries back to the United States, support cutting-edge advanced manufacturing, rebuild the middle class, and put upstate’s economy on a permanent upswing.”

Manufacturers investing in New York 

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Saint-Gobain invests $40M to build catalyst carrier manufacturing facility in New York
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Corning invests $315M to upgrade semiconductor glass manufacturing facility in New York
According to the company, the project will help to create a reliable domestic supply of vital semiconductor manufacturing components.