Image: Brian Kostiuk via Unsplash
Are you wondering how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will affect the supply chain? I was not, until I read this headline from VentureBeat: “Ukraine supplies 90% of U.S. semiconductor-grade neon (and what it means to chip supply chain).” Here is an unfun paragraph:
According to research firm Techcet, Ukraine supplies more than 90% of the U.S.’s semiconductor-grade neon, a gas integral to the lasers used in the chip-making process, while Russia supplies 35% of the U.S.’s palladium supply, a rare metal that can be used to create semiconductors.
Or, ya know… not. The piece has the Semiconductor Industry Association saying the industry “has a diverse set of key materials and gases, so we do not believe there are immediate supply disruption risks related to Russia and Ukraine…” I’m sorry… with all the disruptions out there already, you can seriously afford more? Or, as VentureBeat puts it:
…the conflict is placing increasing pressure on a supply chain that’s already made it difficult to source chips for hardware and enterprise applications throughout the pandemic.
