 SkyWater building | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| NYSE: SKYT | |
| Industry | Semiconductor manufacturer |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Headquarters | Bloomington, Minnesota, U.S. |
Key people | Thomas Sonderman [1] |
| Products | Semiconductor Silicon chips Silicon wafer |
| Website | skywatertechnology.com |
SkyWater Technology is an American semiconductor engineering and fabrication foundry, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. [2] [3] It is the only US-owned pure-play silicon foundry. [4]
The company was formed in 2017, when private equity firm Oxbow Industries acquired Cypress Foundry Solutions, a microelectronics fabricator that was previously a subsidiary of California-based Cypress Semiconductor Corp. [5] [6]
In early 2021, SkyWater acquired an additional chip factory in Osceola, Florida, [7] repurposing the University of Central Florida NeoCity fabrication facility into a second fabrication site. [8] It expanded its facility and added 100 new jobs in 2021, partially due to funding from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. [9] Skywater Technology acquired Infineon Technologies 200mm semiconductor fab in Austin, Texas on June 30, 2025 adding approximately 1,000 employees to SkyWaters workforce. [10]
SkyWater Technology filed an initial public offering with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in March 2021. [11] [12] [13]
SkyWater has been cited as an example of the infrastructure the Biden administration is investing in. On April 12, 2021, President Joe Biden held up a silicon wafer created by SkyWater while saying chips represents a form of infrastructure. [14] [15]
On July 20, 2022, Skywater announced plans to invest 1.8 billion dollars into a manufacturing facility in West Lafayette, Indiana, but the company has since backed out of those plans due to a shortage of funding. [16] The facility is within Purdue University's Discovery Park District. [17] [18]
SkyWater produces semiconductor chips using 90-nanometer process technology on equipment designed to handle 200-millimeter wafers of silicon. [19] [20] SkyWater works in the consumer, industrial, military & defense, and automotive industries. [21] SkyWater is a Department of Defense-accredited Trusted supplier, part of the DOD's efforts to secure a supply chain within the United States. [22] [23]
SkyWater has collaborated with Efabless and Google to create the first open source chip manufacturing program. [24]
On August 21, 2021, SkyWater announced an expanded partnership with Rockley Photonics Holdings, focused on Rockley's health monitoring solution. [25]