European Semiconductor Hub Imec Expands Investment Arm into the United States
Leuven, Tuesday 19 May 2026
Imec is launching US investment offices to accelerate technology spin-offs, perfectly timed with its unveiling of a world-first quantum computing device featuring microscopic six-nanometre components.
Transatlantic Ambitions for Deep-Tech Scaling
On 18 May 2026, the Belgian semiconductor research institute Imec officially unveiled a dedicated United States presence for its deep-tech venturing arm, imec.ventures [2]. Establishing teams on both the East Coast and in Silicon Valley, the initiative is designed to strengthen ties with American venture capitalists and accelerate the scaling of semiconductor start-ups [2]. Rather than merely injecting capital, imec.ventures accelerates growth through strategic, non-cash contributions, granting spin-offs access to Imec’s extensive intellectual property, infrastructure, and more than 40 years of research and development expertise [2]. This venturing framework, which operates alongside imec.istart and imec.xpand, focuses on long-term value creation for the semiconductor industry [2].
A Quantum Leap in Silicon Manufacturing
Concurrently, Imec has reinforced its position at the vanguard of semiconductor innovation. On 19 May 2026, during the ITF World conference in Leuven, the institute presented the world’s first integrated hardware device fabricated using High NA EUV lithography [1]. The breakthrough involves a quantum dot qubit device, marking a critical milestone in the journey to scale quantum computing from isolated laboratory experiments to large-scale, manufacturable systems [1]. By utilising silicon quantum dot spin qubits, which are inherently compatible with standard Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) processes, the research hub is paving a viable path for industrial-scale quantum production [1].
Fortifying the European Semiconductor Value Chain
This dual announcement—spanning aggressive venture capital expansion and bleeding-edge hardware development—highlights a broader push to fortify the European semiconductor value chain [GPT]. The continent’s strategy for supply chain resilience heavily relies on its dominance in highly specialised equipment and research, championed by entities like Imec, ASML, and deposition equipment specialist ASM [GPT]. By leveraging standard CMOS processes, as noted by Imec’s project leader and quantum integration engineer Sofie Beyne, the industry can “reuse the entire ecosystem of silicon scaling” [1]. This ecosystem increasingly includes adjacent technologies such as integrated photonics, supported by hubs like the Netherlands’ PhotonDelta, which are vital for the high-speed data transfer required in advanced chip design and quantum computing systems [GPT].