SandboxAQ just landed half a billion dollars from the US government to do something deceptively simple: find better stuff to make chips with.
The $500 million award, announced on June 17 from the US Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Research and Development Office, represents one of the most substantial CHIPS R&D commitments explicitly aimed at materials discovery. The goal is to use quantum-AI simulations to identify alternative materials for semiconductor manufacturing, reducing American dependence on foreign-controlled supply chains in the process.
What SandboxAQ is actually building
SandboxAQ’s approach is to skip most of that guesswork. The company’s ReAQT platform and what it calls Large Quantitative Models (LQMs) use high-fidelity simulations to evaluate millions of potential materials for semiconductor manufacturing. Instead of testing candidate materials one by one in a lab, AI models narrow the field to the most promising options before anyone picks up a beaker.
The research targets are specific and strategically chosen. The company will focus on PFAS-free process chemicals, advanced catalysts, rare earth-free magnets, and alternative battery systems. Promising candidates identified through simulation will transition to lab validation and eventually domestic production through partnerships with US-based firms. The company has also been collaborating with NVIDIA on AQCat workflows for advanced catalyst discovery.
