Semiconductors, or microchips, are akin to tiny silicon brains inside everything – from your phone and car to NHS scanners and the nation’s power grid. They are essential, yet Britain’s role in making them has been uncertain. In 2023, the Sunak government unveiled its National Semiconductor Strategy, identifying where the UK can compete in the market. In this article, Professor John Goodacre discusses whether the strategy is bold enough, and if it is being driven with the urgency required.

• Britain’s strength lies in its advanced research capabilities; however, turning these strengths into industrial capacity will require sustained momentum.
• Researchers at The University of Manchester’s National Graphene Institutedemonstrate the specialised research and development capability the strategy seeks to harness.
• The UK must commit to a sustained, well‑funded national strategy, prioritising domestic fabrication and stronger support for heterogeneous integration.

The strategy acknowledges that the world runs on chips, that the supply chain is fragile (such as the automotive industry grinding to a halt following chip shortages), and that relying too heavily on manufacturing hubs in potentially volatile regions is risky business. It also avoids delusions of grandeur, acknowledging that pouring tens of billions into building massive state-of-the-art silicon factories to compete with global giants was never realistic for the UK.

Instead, the strategy focuses on Britain’s genuine strengths: world-class chip design and intellectual property, cutting-edge research in our universities, and a particular knack for advanced ‘compound’ semiconductors, which are used in things like radar and high-efficiency power electronics.

The plan promises action: up to £1 billion over a decade (a figure that looked modest even in 2023 compared to US and EU spending), an advisory panel, better access to design tools and prototyping for start-ups, and efforts to boost skills and protect our technology from falling into the wrong hands through the National Security and Investment Act.

However, now the question is one of momentum. Is the UK decisively carving out its niche in compound semiconductors and next-generation design? A strategy document alone doesn’t build an industry or secure a supply chain. It needs relentless drive, a faster funding rollout, and perhaps a bolder ambition backing those niche strengths.

Britain has the brains and the heritage in semiconductor innovation, and the government’s strategy provides a map. Now it needs to put its foot down and drive, ensuring this smart focus translates into tangible industrial success and national resilience before the global landscape shifts again. The silicon clock is ticking.

Building a blueprint for more secure computing

The UK’s National Semiconductor Strategy acknowledges that we can’t outspend global giants on mass silicon fabrication. We do, however, have opportunities for research and development. The University of Manchester, with facilities like the National Graphene Institute and expertise in areas such as advanced chip design and compound semiconductors, represents the sort of specialised R&D capability the strategy rightly champions.

Fundamental hardware decisions echo through our entire digital lives, and radical shifts in architecture are possible, and indeed necessary, to meet evolving demands – whether for performance, energy efficiency, or, critically today, security.

The semiconductor strategy also highlights the security risks inherent in semiconductor technology. My work on the Digital Security by Design (DSbD) initiative took a different approach, one that directly addresses a core pillar of the strategy: protecting the UK against security risks. We championed the CHERI principles – Capability Hardware Enhanced RISC Instructions – which build security into the processor’s instruction set, the basic language the hardware speaks. It provides fine-grained memory protection, making devastating vulnerabilities like buffer overflows, which hackers have exploited for decades, practically impossible at the hardware level. We built the prototype Morello board, a tangible demonstration of this.

The technology works and is deployable. It is possible to run existing code, often with just a recompile, on CHERI-enabled hardware and instantly eliminate vast swathes of security flaws. This isn’t just about preventing attacks; it’s about reducing the colossal burden of patching, freeing up developers, and ultimately building more trustworthy systems – essential if the UK wants to lead in critical technologies.

However, proving the technology works is only half the battle. The strategy and a recently published UK Government policy statement correctly identified market dynamics as a challenge, and we now face the critical hurdle of adoption. Concerted action is needed to signal that secure-by-design hardware isn’t a ‘nice-to-have’ but an essential requirement.

Foundational change is possible, and we have a viable blueprint through semiconductors for a more secure digital future, one that aligns perfectly with the UK’s strategic goals. We’ve demonstrated the UK’s capacity for deep-tech innovation in semiconductors. Now, we need the collective will to translate that blueprint into the bedrock of our digital infrastructure. The National Semiconductor Strategy provided the map; it’s time to accelerate the journey, something the government’s funding can support.

Building on strong foundations

The UK’s National Semiconductor Strategy correctly identifies the nation’s strengths and the right direction of travel. However, to protect and truly capitalise growth around these advantages, and build a resilient and thriving semiconductor ecosystem, a more decisive, robust, and integrated approach is now essential.

The bedrock of the UK’s current semiconductor expertise, from the foundational principles of DSbD to the advanced capabilities in compound semiconductors, lies within our universities and research institutions. These are engines of innovation, training grounds for future talent, and the source of the intellectual property that underpins our strategic advantage. Yet, this vital sector of higher education research is facing significant headwinds, and the financial model which leaves universities increasingly reliant on project-based funding is inherently precarious. Despite the mechanisms put in place post-Brexit, collaborative research with EU counterparts continues to face challenges, hindering the free flow of knowledge and expertise.

What is heterogenous integration, and how can it help?

While the focus on compound semiconductors is a valuable starting point, the Government’s support for design capability must embrace a broader vision centred on heterogeneous integration. This means actively promoting research and development into methods and technologies that allow for the seamless integration of diverse semiconductor components and technologies from different design groups into a single device. This includes combining the power management through compound semiconductors, the high-speed communication and novel computation capabilities of photonics, and the intelligence and control offered by traditional silicon-based digital designs.

By strategically investing in research that fosters this synergistic combination, the UK can achieve significant advancements and develop highly differentiated, competitive semiconductor solutions. This approach would also protect and scale specialist businesses, preventing their inevitable integration into large international companies, as happened previously when specialist IP businesses were absorbed by mega-businesses capable of producing today’s leading chips.

The UK Government should invest in a national mainstream fabrication facility focused on immersion DUV lithography. This should be capable of producing the predominant chips used by UK business and academic research, at around the 65nm to 28nm scale. This would mitigate supply-chain shocks by providing a UK source of critical chips over the bulk international sources. It would also support research and innovation, particularly in support of heterogeneous integration, by providing a platform for developing advanced semiconductor solutions that combine compound semiconductors, photonics, and traditional silicon-based designs.

Critically, this capability could unlock economically viable academic research, especially for integrating leading-edge AI chiplet-based technologies, while also supporting evolving concepts such as cryoCMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) technology. This is designed to operate at cryogenic temperatures, typically near or below -269°C, which is particularly relevant in the field of quantum computing, where many components require extremely low temperatures to function, essential for unlocking the potential of quantum computing and its integration with classical semiconductor-based computing. This investment would also stimulate economic growth, create high-value jobs, and foster the development of a skilled workforce in the UK semiconductor industry.

A sustained approach and strategy

Semiconductor research, especially for design prototyping and implementation analysis, dictates non-typical innovation cycles and does not align with current funding arrangements. Maintaining critical research knowledge and experience is essential to realise impact and advance innovation. A sustained approach doesn’t just prevent loss – it creates a robust foundation for cumulative experience and innovation, allowing insights from one project to directly inform and accelerate the next. This will therefore secure a decisive competitive advantage in a rapidly evolving sector of research while also increasing the attractiveness of UK-based research activities over those available in the EU and beyond.

By implementing these recommendations, the Government can move beyond simply having a smart focus, to delivering a truly impactful and resilient semiconductor strategy. The UK possesses the intellectual capital and the innovative spirit. Now, it needs the sustained investment, a secure academic research sector, and strategic support to translate that potential into tangible industrial success and secure its place at the forefront of the global semiconductor landscape.

The time for decisive action is now.