Micron adds $10B memory lab to its Idaho expansion plans

Micron adds $10B memory lab to its Idaho expansion plans

Thu, August 20, 2026 at 6:08 PM GMT+3 3 min read

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Dive Brief:

• Micron is building on its Idaho fab investment plans with Micron Research Labs, which will focus on critical memory technologies, advanced memory and compute architectures, packaging, future semiconductor manufacturing and other key areas, the company said in a news release.

• Billed as the first dedicated memory research hub of its kind in the United States, the Boise-based facility will fund "extensive university collaborations, global satellite labs and deep ecosystem partnerships," creating a research network focused on advanced AI technologies.

• The lab will be connected to Micron's research and technology footprint across the U.S., Europe, Japan, India, Singapore and Taiwan. Micron expects to break ground in 2027.

Dive Insight:

Micron made its latest announcement amid other recent efforts to increase manufacturing capacity and bolster the U.S. semiconductor supply chain.

In July, the company announced it would spend more than $250 billion domestically through 2035, an increase from prior investment plans to meet demand for its dynamic random-access memory products. It also said it was spending up to $3 billion to fortify the domestic semiconductor supply chain.

In June, the company announced an approximately $200 billion investment in semiconductor manufacturing and research and development in Idaho, New York and Virginia. Part of that investment included a second memory fab in Boise.

Micron broke ground on a $100 billion semiconductor fab in January in Onondaga County, New York. The campus could feature up to four fabs and will house the most advanced memory manufacturing facility in the world, helping it to meet the demands of the AI boom, according to a news release.

It also signed memory supply agreements with Ford and GM to help meet memory and storage chip demand for next-generation vehicles.

Micron reported record revenue and gross margin in its third fiscal quarter of 2026, both of which exceeded the high end of its guidance. Data center revenue was particularly strong, exceeding $25 billion in fiscal Q3, while data center solid-state drive revenue exceeded $5 billion.

Micron's new Boise research hub will "look beyond a 10-year horizon while helping build the next generation of memory researchers and technology leaders," the company said.

"We are looking around the corner to the memory and compute systems the future will demand, bringing together the best minds across academia, government, startups and industry," Micron President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said in a statement. "As the only U.S.-based manufacturer of memory, we have long believed in the future that AI is now making real."

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick praised the announcement in a statement, saying Micron's commitment will "strengthen American innovation, create hundreds of jobs and ensure memory never limits innovation."

The Trump administration has prioritized boosting the domestic semiconductor supply chain. Earlier this month, President Donald Trump announced a 15% tariff on certain polysilicon-derivative products used in semiconductor manufacturing in an effort to increase U.S. production capacity.

In addition, the Department of Commerce in 2024 awarded Micron $6.2 billion in CHIPS and Science Act funding to build fabs in New York and Idaho.

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