SandboxAQ secures $500M award from CHIPS R&D Office

Investing.com -- SandboxAQ announced today a definitive agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce's CHIPS Research and Development Office for a $500 million award to develop critical materials for semiconductor manufacturing currently controlled by foreign suppliers.

The enterprise SaaS company, which provides solutions combining AI and quantum technology, will use the funding to develop new molecules and formulations across four areas: PFAS-free process chemicals, catalysts, rare earth-free magnets, and battery systems. The company plans to advance successful results into scaled domestic manufacturing through American manufacturing partners.

SandboxAQ will enhance its ReAQT software platform and Large Quantitative Models to screen millions of candidate materials virtually before selecting promising options for laboratory validation. The company's LQMs are AI systems trained on physics, chemistry, and biology laws rather than human language.

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said: "President Trump is committed to strengthening America's semiconductor supply chain and ensuring national security. This award will accelerate the discovery and innovation of critical materials and reduce our reliance on foreign-controlled materials."

The Department of Commerce will receive a minority, non-voting equity stake in SandboxAQ as part of the agreement.

Jack Hidary, CEO of SandboxAQ, said: "Securing America's semiconductor future means controlling the materials that drive this vital sector. SandboxAQ's Large Quantitative Models are grounded in the engineering and physics needed to address the needs of our domestic semiconductor sector."

The four programmatic areas include developing PFAS-free alternatives for heat-transfer fluids and coatings, improving catalysts for ultra-pure gas generation, creating magnets that reduce dependence on neodymium, and developing battery chemistries that eliminate reliance on lithium and other foreign-controlled materials.

China controls more than 90 percent of global neodymium-based permanent magnet production, which are used in chip printing machines, vacuum pumps, and precision actuators in semiconductor factories.

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