ALBANY – NY Creates, the state entity that oversees Albany Nanotech, has signed two new international research cooperation agreements that promote U.S. interests with its geopolitical allies.
One of the agreements was with the Korea Institute of Advancement of Technology and was signed by the state and Korea officials during the official state visit by Republic of Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol.
The signing ceremony was attended by NY Creates President David Anderson and KIAT President Byung-joo Min. They were joined by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Lee Chang Yang, the Republic of Korea’s minister of technology, industry and energy.
“The semiconductor industry is global and as we work to boost domestic research and production, it remains critically important for U.S. organizations like NY Creates to partner and collaborate with international allies like the KIAT – the country’s premier institute for promoting innovation in industrial technology,” said NY Creates President David Anderson.
The agreement will give South Korea and its semiconductor companies access to Albany Nanotech’s clean room manufacturing facilities.
The agreement calls for the two sides to “organize joint seminars, meetings and other activities to promote cooperation in innovation, education and workforce development between companies and educational institutions from Korea and New York.”
The agreement between South Korea and NY Creates comes as Albany Nanotech is vying to become the headquarters of the new National Semiconductor Technology Center, a multi-billion dollar federal research institute that aims to restore America’s chipmaking industry, which has migrated overseas over the past several decades amid China’s rising geopolitical status.
NY Creates also recently signed a similar agreement with the Israel Innovation Authority. The document was signed at the end of a New York trade mission to Israel led by Empire State Development.