For much of its life, Moore’s Law was driven by focused improvements in fabrication. Lithography systems advanced, transistor sizes shrank, and electrical efficiency improved within the walls of semiconductor companies. But as technical barriers have grown more complex, progress now depends on a larger, more integrated community. Erik Hosler, an advocate for collaborative semiconductor innovation and ecosystem-based strategy, highlights that keeping Moore’s Law alive demands contributions from far beyond chipmaking.
That shift marks a turning point. Moore’s Law is no longer a singular breakthrough in process technology. It is about synchronized advancements across domains, including materials science, optics, software, design tools, and packaging. No single company or discipline can carry the load alone. It takes a village. And that village must work together with greater urgency and precision than ever before.
The Rise of Cross-Disciplinary Complexity
With smaller technology nodes, challenges multiply. Patterning becomes stochastic. Power density climbs. Variability introduces yield concerns. And the limits of classic scaling begin to interfere with predictable performance gains.
To navigate these challenges, innovation has expanded outward. Foundries now rely on chemical suppliers for advanced resists. Chipmakers turn to photonics engineers to develop new interconnects. Packaging houses collaborate with thermal engineers to manage heat in dense 3D stacks.
The complexity of each advance requires detailed coordination. New material can trigger changes in etching, metrology, and even circuit layout. The success of a new lithography tool may depend on developments in photoresist chemistry, optical modeling, and cleanroom standards. It is no longer an innovation within a silo. It is an orchestration.
Work Together or Slow Down
That message was echoed throughout the SPIE Advanced Lithography symposium, where experts from across the semiconductor ecosystem underscored the need for alignment. No participant claimed sole ownership of future progress. Instead, the emphasis was on connection.
From EUV tool suppliers to AI-enhanced inspection platforms, each contribution feeds into the larger system. Every gain in one area must be reinforced by progress in others. Erik Hosler observes, “It’s going to involve innovation across multiple different sectors.” That is not just a reflection; it is a call to action. A system as layered and interdependent as modern chip design cannot move forward unless all parts move together.
Shared Roadmaps and Mutual Dependencies
The clearest expression of this collaboration is found in shared roadmaps. Organizations like SEMI, IMEC, and the IEEE coordinate long-term visions that bring together foundries, equipment vendors, material suppliers, and design houses.
These roadmaps help ensure that the investment in one area aligns with readiness in another. A new etch process might only make sense if compatible resists and metrology tools exist. A novel logic design may require interposer support and heterogeneous packaging.
Without shared visibility, companies risk building isolated solutions that cannot be integrated into production. With shared visibility, they unlock efficiencies that benefit the entire ecosystem.
The Role of Startups and Academic Labs
Cross-industry innovation does not happen only among giants. Startups and academic research labs are vital contributors. They often operate at the edge of feasibility, exploring materials, architectures, and fabrication techniques that large players may be hesitant to pursue early on.
Collaborations between startups and established players bring agility to the ecosystem. Universities, for their part, often house unique facilities and interdisciplinary programs that foster experimentation. When these institutions are included in industry roadmaps, the pace of discovery accelerates.
For Moore’s Law to continue, these outposts of innovation must be connected, supported, and brought into the fold.
Open Standards and Data Sharing
Cross-industry collaboration also requires a shift in mindset from competition to transparency in certain domains. That is why open standards and shared data models have become critical.
Interoperability between EDA tools, packaging platforms, and manufacturing processes reduces friction and accelerates development. Shared defect libraries, benchmarking metrics, and test protocols help companies evaluate modern technologies more rapidly and with less risk.
This kind of openness does not undermine differentiation. It allows companies to focus on their proprietary work where it matters most while relying on common infrastructure for basic coordination. That shared foundation is how ecosystems scale effectively.
Photonics and Packaging
An illustrative example of cross-industry success is the push toward photonic integration. Bringing optics into chip systems requires contributions from multiple sectors to ensure alignment and reliability.
None of these components was sufficient on its own. But together, they enabled products with new performance capabilities, especially in data centers and AI systems. This type of layered innovation is a blueprint for future success.
Education Must Match Collaboration
If innovation now spans sectors, so too must education. Engineers trained in only one domain may struggle to contribute effectively in a multi-disciplinary setting.
Curricula that combine electronics, optics, materials, and systems engineering are becoming essential. Programs that include cross-functional capstones, industry-sponsored labs, and real-world supply chain simulations better prepare students for the realities of modern semiconductor development.
Cross-industry success begins with cross-trained talent.
Policies That Support Ecosystem Health
Public policy also plays a role. Governments recognize the importance of collaboration fund initiatives that bridge silos. National semiconductor strategies increasingly focus on regional clusters, startup incubation, and public-private partnerships.
Programs like the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act or the European Chips Act offer models for how coordinated funding can elevate an entire industry. These efforts go beyond subsidies. They foster connections that make breakthroughs possible. Supporting Moore’s Law today means supporting the whole environment in which it operates.
Metrics for Collective Progress
One final challenge is measuring success. If performance no longer hinges solely on transistor count, how do we know whether we are progressing?
The answer lies in system-level metrics like energy per task, total system latency, cost per inference, and uptime reliability. These outcomes often depend on how well sectors collaborate.
By tracking performance in this broader way, the industry can better align goals across companies and disciplines. It allows each contributor to see how their part feeds into the whole.
A Shared Future
Moore’s Law once described a path forward for transistor scaling. Today, it describes a shared ambition for technological growth. That ambition now rests on coordination between dozens of industries, thousands of contributors, and a mindset that values partnership as much as invention. The future of chipmaking will not be built by any single entity. It will be assembled, evaluated, and refined across a network of collaborators, each bringing unique value to a complex whole.
As the SPIE discussions made clear, sustaining progress is no longer a solo act. It is a symphony. It is a village effort, one that is intelligent, interconnected, and collective. Moore’s Law is still alive. But it now lives in the space between disciplines, in the links between companies, and in the partnerships that turn lofty ideas into working systems.
