Gov. Greg Abbott is touting Texas’ growing semiconductor industry after touring a local facility on Monday.
The governor visited Tokyo Electron’s’ U.S. headquarters in southeast Austin, where workers are being trained for jobs in semiconductor manufacturing. The facility will help train an estimated 2,200 people per year.
The governor said Texas and the company are investing in workforce training to make sure the state has the technicians needed as demand for semiconductors continues to grow.
“Almost everything that people will be using currently, as well as into the future, will involve a semiconductor one way or the other,” Abbott said. “We need to be, as a state, leading the way, and not just manufacturing the semiconductors, but having the technicians that are going to be able to work on them every step of the way.”
Abbott said Texas ranks No. 1 in the country for semiconductor jobs and workforce training and that investments like this are intended to keep the industry’s growth in the state. Texas is home to more than 51,000 semiconductor industry workers, which has grown by 21% over the last five years, according to the governor.
Tokyo Electron’s training and research facility opened last year. The company has operated in Texas for more than 30 years.