Czech Semiconductor Centre has been launched in Brno

The Czech Republic has taken a strategic step to strengthen its position in the semiconductor sector. The newly established Czech Semiconductor Centre (CSC) in Brno will connect academia with industry, promote innovation and facilitate chip development for small and start-up companies. It will offer mentoring, financial advice and access to pilot lines, therefore contributing to the development of the semiconductor ecosystem in the Czech Republic. It will also become part of a European network of centres that aim to enhance Europe's technological self-sufficiency.

The launch represents a key step for the Czech and European semiconductor sector. The establishment of the centre fulfills the goals of the National Semiconductor Strategy, which was created in response to the need to strengthen European and Czech self-sufficiency in the chip sector under the leadership of the Ministry of Industry and Trade in cooperation with the Government Office and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. Its objective is, among other things, to build a national competence centre and increase the number of experts, which the CSC will significantly facilitate. The launch of the CSC is supported by the European initiative "Chips for Europe", which aims to strengthen technological capacity and promote innovation within the area of design and production of advanced chips, and thereby contributes to achieving the EU-wide goals outlined in the European Chips Act.

"The launch of the Czech Semiconductor Centre is a strategic step for the future of our country. It is a key project that will help the Czech Republic maintain its competitiveness, security and technological sovereignty in a time of global struggle for these values. Thanks to this, the Czech Republic has all the prerequisites to play in the European league in this key sector," said Prime Minister Petr Fiala.

"The establishment of the Czech Semiconductor Centre is the product of the consistent efforts of the members of the founding consortium, which took more than a year and a half. During this time, it was necessary to carefully shape the focus of the Centre into areas in which the Czech semiconductor industry has the potential to successfully compete not only on a European but also on a global scale. It has been possible to focus, integrate and align the interests of all those involved in the Czech semiconductor industry on the platform of the National Semiconductor Cluster. This applies to the industry, state administration, regions, and universities, which have a difficult task – to ensure sufficient manpower capacity for the Czech semiconductor industry through their graduates, which the BUT is actively working on, for example through the opening of specialised study programmes," said Ladislav Janíček, Rector of Brno University of Technology.

The BUT, which considers semiconductors to be its important strategic area, coordinated the preparation of the Czech Semiconductor Centre and will also serve as its headquarters for some time. "I greatly appreciate the constructive cooperation between the members of the consortium that surrounded the birth of the centre and the support that the idea of establishing the centre received from the political representatives as well as the regions – particularly the South Moravian Region. I am very pleased that the concept of the centre, which we are launching today, is not just an ordinary compromise, but a true reflection of the expert potential and competence that we have in our country in the field of semiconductors. The Centre therefore has a real opportunity to contribute to the strengthening of competitiveness of the Czech economy in this sector and to support the achievement of the objectives of the recently adopted National Semiconductor Strategy. The Strategy was developed in parallel with the preparation of the Centre with significant input from the members of its founding consortium. I would like our country to succeed in implementing projects based primarily on expertise and competence on the way to a value-added economy based on knowledge and innovation as I believe it has been done in the case of the Czech Semiconductor Centre," added Ladislav Janíček.

The Czech Semiconductor Centre consists of a six-member consortium, which includes the two largest Czech technical universities – BUT and CTU, the companies onsemi and Codasip, the National Semiconductor Cluster (CNSC) and the innovation agency JIC. The financing of the centre for the first four years of its operation is provided by the Chips for Europe initiative and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic. The Centre integrates the Czech Republic into the emerging European network of competence centres. Similar competence centres will be established in all EU member states and will play a key role in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in the field of semiconductor technologies. The Czech Semiconductor Centre will actively collaborate with other European competence centres, as confirmed by the Joint Declaration on Competence Centres for Semiconductors issued by the Silicon Europe Alliance.

The competence centre will provide qualified services in accordance with the requirements of the Chips for Europe act in the area of chip design, especially for start-ups and small companies. It will provide private companies with mentoring, financial advice, access to pilot lines and a pan-European design platform. This will allow companies to develop new products faster and cheaper, facilitate testing and enable small-scale production. Another key role of the centre is to provide qualified personnel for the semiconductor sector. The Centre will therefore focus on expanding and improving the range of educational programmes in the field of chip design and production, deepening cooperation between universities and private companies, fostering talent and attracting new students to microelectronics and related fields. In this area, the Centre will work closely with BUT and CTU, whose role is to provide education in semiconductor and chip design in order to substantially strengthen the human resource capacity for the semiconductor industry in the Czech Republic.

The specific focus of the centre is based on the existing specialization of the leading players in the semiconductor industry in the Czech Republic, and its profile is reflected in the unique position of onsemi, the largest semiconductor manufacturer in the Czech Republic, and Codasip, a leading developer of semiconductor design applications. "At onsemi, we are aware that the deepening of cooperation between industry and universities and research institutions not only makes sense, but is a literal necessity in today's modern world. It is vital to show young people that technology and innovation are the engine of further development in the Czech Republic and to offer them quality technical education, which is the best investment in their own future. We have been working closely with universities for decades and we are prepared to continue to support their further development, for example by involving our experts in the development of new fields of study and in teaching itself," stated Aleš Cáb, Vice President of onsemi. “As global demand for semiconductors rises, the EU must lead in this critical sector to ensure technological sovereignty, economic growth, and national security. By investing in research, development, and partnerships, Czechia can help reduce reliance on external suppliers and set a global standard for innovation. As a leading RISC-V supplier, Codasip will be a strong contributor to the success of the center,” added Karel Masařík, founder and Chief Innovation Officer of Codasip, who has been selected as the Centre's Director.

The full version of the press release you can read here.

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Author	Mgr. Kamila Šmídková
Published	2025-04-07 14:59
Link	https://www.vut.cz/en/but/f19528/d286646