xLight Advances AI-Driven Lithography with Up to $150M U.S. Backing

Semiconductor startup xLight has secured a preliminary agreement for up to $150 million in funding from the U.S. Commerce Department, marking the first award under the Chips and Science Act in Trump’s second term. The government would take a minority equity stake as the company develops advanced AI-enabled lithography technology.

Former Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, now Executive Chairman of xLight and a General Partner at Playground Global, is helping steer the company’s strategy as it targets what he identifies as the industry’s greatest bottleneck: next-generation light sources for chip manufacturing. Founded by Nicholas Kelez, xLight is building large-scale free electron laser systems designed to support extreme ultraviolet production and enable continued semiconductor scaling. The company aims to deliver its first commercial system before the end of the decade.