Siemens and GlobalFoundries are collaborating around AI and automation in semiconductor manufacturing, as chipmakers and equipment providers look for ways to stabilize production amid sustained global demand.

The companies said the partnership will focus on deploying AI-enabled software, sensors, and real-time control systems across semiconductor fabrication facilities. The goal is to improve operational efficiency and equipment uptime while addressing growing concerns around supply-chain reliability for chips used in AI, energy, defense, and connectivity.

Rather than introducing a single new product, the collaboration centers on integrating Siemens’ industrial automation and digital manufacturing software with GlobalFoundries’ fabrication operations.

Siemens brings industrial automation, energy and building technologies, and manufacturing software to the partnership, including tools for chip design, fab automation, and lifecycle management. GlobalFoundries contributes its semiconductor manufacturing and process technologies, along with design capabilities from its MIPS subsidiary, which focuses on RISC-V processor IP.

One area of emphasis is predictive maintenance and centralized automation within fabrication facilities, where unplanned downtime can have outsized effects on output. By applying AI to equipment monitoring and process control, Siemens and GlobalFoundries aim to reduce disruptions and improve consistency in high-volume manufacturing environments.

The companies said they plan to deploy many of the technologies within their own operations before extending the approach to other industrial use cases. The same automation and monitoring capabilities used in chip fabs could later be applied to adjacent industries, including robotics and connected infrastructure.

The collaboration comes as governments and enterprises continue to treat semiconductors as strategic assets rather than commodity components. Efforts to localize production and reduce reliance on concentrated manufacturing hubs have increased scrutiny on how efficiently and reliably fabs operate, particularly in regions investing heavily in domestic chip capacity.

“Our economy runs on silicon – one wafer at a time,” explained Cedrik Neike, a member of the managing board of Siemens AG and CEO of Digital Industries.

GlobalFoundries CEO Tim Breen added that secure, locally manufactured chips are increasingly important as AI moves from cloud environments into physical devices and industrial systems.

GlobalFoundries operates manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, including its Dresden site in Germany, which is the largest semiconductor production facility in Europe.