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Plan for $100 billion in U.S. science spending to beat China gets IBM backing

The bipartisan Endless Frontier Act would send $100 billion to the National Science Foundation

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna speaks while seated in front of an open water bottle.

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna endorsed the bipartisan Endless Frontier Act, which would boost U.S. government spending on science in the competition against China.

(Photo by Brian Ach/Getty Images for Wired)

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna joined the White House and bipartisan members of Congress in endorsing the Endless Frontier Act, which would direct $100 billion in spending to the National Science Foundation as the U.S. looks to get ahead in competition against China.

"Just like the United States chose to invest in science in the post-WWII era, the Endless Frontier Act offers a once-in-a-generation opportunity to refocus our institutions on innovation," Krishna said in a statement released Thursday.

The bill, which already has the support of several industry groups, would create a new Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation within NSF and reserve $10 billion for the Department of Commerce to distribute to regional tech hubs. It would also focus work on emerging tech including AI, advanced manufacturing and robotics.

To address the chip shortage, Krishna also called for fully funding the National Semiconductor Technology Center that Congress authorized last year, and suggested placing it in Albany, New York, where IBM has a research center.

 Ben Brody

Ben Brody (@ BenBrodyDC) is a senior reporter at Protocol focusing on how Congress, courts and agencies affect the online world we live in. He formerly covered tech policy and lobbying (including antitrust, Section 230 and privacy) at Bloomberg News, where he previously reported on the influence industry, government ethics and the 2016 presidential election. Before that, Ben covered business news at CNNMoney and AdAge, and all manner of stories in and around New York. He still loves appearing on the New York news radio he grew up with.

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