xLight, a U.S.-based company developing what it calls the world’s most powerful lasers, said it has signed a Letter of Intent with the U.S. Department of Commerce for $150 million in proposed federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act, marking the first award from the Trump administration’s newly established CHIPS Research and Development Office (CRDO). The proposed funding signals Washington’s heightened focus on next-generation lithography as it attempts to reclaim leadership in advanced semiconductor manufacturing.
“The future of semiconductor manufacturing hinges on lithography, and we are grateful for the support of the Trump Administration, Secretary Lutnick, and Deputy Secretary Dabbar,” said Nicholas Kelez, CEO and CTO of xLight. He added that the incentives will help accelerate construction of the company’s first free-electron laser (FEL) system at the Albany Nanotech Complex, positioning it alongside what he described as the world’s most advanced lithography research capabilities.
The LOI centers on xLight’s effort to build an energy-efficient extreme ultraviolet (EUV) laser with performance levels “tenfold” greater than current systems—technology that could transform chipmaking productivity and reduce fabrication bottlenecks. The company says its FEL platform will underpin the next era of Moore’s Law, enabling more powerful and efficient semiconductor devices.
“Reviving Moore’s Law and restoring American leadership in light is a once-in-a-generation opportunity,” said Pat Gelsinger, Executive Chairman of xLight and General Partner at Playground Global. “Building an energy-efficient EUV laser with tenfold improvements over today’s technology will drive the next era of Moore’s Law, accelerating fab productivity while developing a critical domestic capability.”
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick underscored the broader geopolitical significance of the deal. “For far too long, America ceded the frontier of advanced lithography to others. Under President Trump, those days are over,” he said. “With this partnership, we are backing a technology that can fundamentally rewrite the limits of chipmaking. xLight’s FEL platform represents the kind of breakthrough innovation that restores American leadership, secures our supply chains, and guarantees that the next generation of semiconductors is born in the United States.”
Deputy Secretary Paul Dabbar added that federal participation will help “validate and rapidly accelerate the commercialization of this novel domestic light source for current and future state-of-the-art semiconductor lithography.”
xLight said the next steps include coordinating with the Department of Commerce and research partners across the Albany Nanotech Complex, with more details expected in the coming months. The company continues collaborating with U.S. national laboratories—including Argonne, Fermilab, Jefferson Lab, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and SLAC—as it advances development of high-power free-electron lasers aimed at redefining the limits of chip manufacturing.
