Bengaluru, Aug 27: In a ceremony today at its world-class research and development center in Tualatin, Oregon, Lam Research Corp. commemorated the start of construction on its new, state-of-the-art Oregon lab, part of a more than Dollar 3 billion planned investment in its global lab network over the next five years to accelerate breakthroughs for the creation of advanced AI chips. Located in the Silicon Forest, in close proximity to key customers, the new 120,000-square-foot facility is expected to increase cleanroom lab space at the Lam Tualatin R&D center by more than 50% when completed, enabling expanded experimentation and accelerated solution development. Lam plans to make the new facility one of its most advanced labs in the world, increasing capacity and capabilities for side-by-side innovation with customers and compressing product development cycles across its global lab network.
President and Chief Executive Officer Tim Archer and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Sesha Varadarajan of Lam Research were joined at the groundbreaking event by U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon: U.S. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici of Oregon; Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read; senior leaders from Intel Corporation and Micron Technology; and other distinguished government, community and nonprofit leaders.
“Delivering next-generation semiconductors at the speed of AI requires relentless innovation and a strategic focus on the technology breakthroughs that matter most to our customers. Our new advanced Oregon lab is expected to deepen our specialized capabilities and add tens of thousands of square feet of valuable cleanroom space, enabling even closer collaboration with customers while strengthening the expertise and reach of our global lab network,” said Varadarajan. “This expansion reflects our continuing commitment to advancing the Silicon Forest as a leader in U.S. semiconductor innovation. We thank the State of Oregon, Washington County, and the City of Tualatin for their long-standing partnership and look forward to continuing our work together to advance economic opportunities in a community we’ve been proud to be part of for more than 30 years.”
Expanding the Power of Lam’s Global Lab Network
The new Oregon lab will build on Lam’s strengths as a leader in atomic-scale semiconductor manufacturing, adding specialized capabilities to support advanced deposition and etch process development, materials science, and hardware validation. Just like in Lam’s existing labs, customers can work closely on-site in the new facility with Lam engineers through each phase of product development, from idea to deployment in their fabs. The lab will also join Lam’s integrated network of specialized labs around the world, which operate together to drive innovation 24/7, in parallel and at scale.
Advancing Lam’s Leadership in the Silicon Forest
Projected to open in 2028, the new state-of-the-art Oregon lab is part of a planned multibuilding expansion at Lam’s Tualatin campus. According to a third-party assessment, over the three-year construction period, the expansion project is expected to create approximately 900 jobs and $500 million in economic output .
Once completed, the expansion is expected to represent the company’s biggest investment in Oregon to date, with a projected economic impact that includes creating more than 400 new Lam jobs and bolstering the number of jobs that Lam supports statewide to more than 11,000. In addition, the completed expansion is projected to increase Lam’s annual economic contribution in Oregon to more than $1.8 billion.
Additional speakers at today’s ceremony included Katheryn Harrington, chair of the Washington County Board of Commissioners, Valerie Pratt, President of the Tualatin City Council and Jayathi Murthy, president of Oregon State University. Photos and other digital assets from the event can be found later today at the Media Center.
U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon:
“I support investing in Oregon’s economy and workers, and Lam Research’s Tualatin Expansion project does both. This expansion will provide hundreds of good-paying, high-tech jobs and further position Oregon’s Silicon Forest as a leader in semiconductor research, development, and manufacturing. The work that happens here will enable advances in all of the latest cutting-edge industries, including vital technologies like AI and robotics.”
U.S. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici of Oregon:
“Innovation, research, and development fuel Oregon’s international semiconductor leadership. Congratulations to Lam Research on the groundbreaking of their new R&D building and thank you for investing in our region and the local workforce.”
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek:
“This state-of-the-art expansion builds on more than 30 years of Lam’s innovation leadership in the Silicon Forest. This is a powerful investment towards Oregon’s economic future that will create more high-quality jobs, strengthen the state’s world-class research and development ecosystem, and help ensure Oregon and the United States continue to lead in semiconductor innovation for decades to come.”
Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read:
“Lam Research’s continued investment in Oregon is a testament to the strength of our state’s semiconductor ecosystem and the talented workforce that powers it. This groundbreaking represents more than a new facility. It represents hundreds of new jobs, accelerated innovation, and a long-term commitment to Oregon. I’m proud to celebrate this important milestone and Lam’s ongoing growth as a leader in the Silicon Forest.”
Naga Chandrasekaran, executive vice president and chief technology and operations officer of Intel Foundry:
“Intel has enjoyed close collaboration with Lam in Oregon and around the world for decades. With this new lab facility, we look forward to working even more closely together to accelerate process development at chip scale, quickly evaluate new technologies, and deliver the breakthroughs required for the next generation of AI-driven computing.”
Manish Bhatia, executive vice president of Global Operations at Micron Technology:
“AI marks a historic inflection point for the semiconductor industry, driving exceptional demand for memory and increasing the need for greater speed, scale and manufacturing capacity. We congratulate Lam Research on today’s groundbreaking and look forward to deepening our longstanding collaboration to equip Micron for significant manufacturing expansion to keep pace with the AI era.”