As a new semiconductor complex in Albany cements upstate New York's role in the domestic production of microchips, several Democrats said Monday federal investments must continue to ensure the industry's success for the next generation.

The nation's first semiconductor technology center at Albany Nanotech uses a new Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography accelerator to push the domestic chip industry forward — or to develop smaller and faster microchips with a focus on research.

"Today, Albany becomes the next frontier of scientific discovery throughout America, but also throughout the world," U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said. "A facility like this has never, never been done before...When we cut this ribbon, it'll sound like a sonic boom that echoes from one end of the country and world to the other."

The Albany hub opened three years after the signing of the federal CHIPS and Science Act, which aims to build the U.S. manufacturing of microchips that power cell phones, automobiles and other devices.

"What drives the systems in your car? What drives the next generations of memory and AI in particular?" NY CREATES President David Anderson told reporters Monday. "Those chips are all built with this leading-edge technology."

The new technology will spur hundreds of jobs in the Capital Region. Anderson said Albany's new lab will have the most advanced chip-making machinery in the world.

The research is expected to lead to breakthroughs in the manufacturing of cellphones, computers and artificial intelligence.

"The AI revolution is just starting," Natcast CEO Deidre Hanford said. "And all of the semiconductors that live in the data centers today, all the advanced processing semiconductors are leveraging this type of capability now and into the future." 

But the industry's success depends on continued investments that could be in jeopardy. President Donald Trump criticized the law earlier this year, and argues tariffs on semiconductors would be more effective than moving production back to the United States.

Schumer on Monday said the federal government's new partnerships with private corporations to develop domestic microchip production must continue to prevent the U.S. from losing manufacturing jobs to overseas.

"The world's most advanced chips will not be made in China," Schumer said. "They will be made in America — made in America, right here in the Capital Region."

In the coming years, Schumer said a quarter of advanced chips produced in the U.S. will be made in upstate communities.

"The best is yet to come because of what we're doing today," he added.

The Capital Region received $825 million in federal grants for chips research and worker training, the senator said.

Federal officials selected Albany Nanotech to be a national hub for industry research last year after over $120 billion was invested in the industry by Micron in Syracuse, GlobalFoundries in Malta and others, creating hundreds of jobs across upstate.

The 2022 CHIPS Act passed with bipartisan support. U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko said he's working to make sure support for the policy continues from both sides of the political aisle after Trump's recent criticism. 

"There are those that criticized me in Congress and said that, 'There should not be federal dollars going into research,' and I said, 'What universe are you working in? Because everyone knows that public-private sector matches are where it's at these days,’" said Tonko, a Democrat.

Tonko said across-the-board investments must continue at the federal and state levels working with corporations and universities to keep U.S. microchip production at the cutting edge.

"We can see from our neighbors in the global community that we need to stay totally involved with this effort, because the competitiveness of the U.S. is critical in this industry," the congressman said.

Tonko said Trump's latest budget proposes major cuts to programs that could underscore the value of the United States' role in the industry, and could threaten to upend the industry's future.

"You have to be research-minded and visionary in the process, and I think the investments are critical," Tonko said. "It’s a huge, transformational moment in our economy, our national economy."

The federal spending debate will continue this fall as Congress considers the next round of appropriation bills. 

"We're still in the midst of what will be unveiled," Tonko said. "We go forward with every bit of integrity and every bit of enthusiasm and determination to stay the course...The stability of this arena has been pretty good, but there's a long way to go yet."