CHIPDIPLO Paris Conference: "Building a Successful Semiconductor Policy Amid Global Frictions"

In Asia, the United States, and Europe, national governments are mobilizing substantial resources to support their semiconductor industries. Recent crises-from the COVID-19 pandemic to evolving U.S. and Chinese export controls-have exposed the extreme vulnerability of semiconductor supply chains to sudden disruptions At the same time, the rapid diffusion of artificial intelligence is driving an urgent need for massive investment in advanced semiconductor manufacturing capacity. The geopolitics of semiconductor technology, particularly U.S.-China competition, has spurred a resurgence of state-led industrial policy in a sector that once relied heavily on global interdependence. Governments are deploying a broad toolkit-direct subsidies, local content requirements, tax incentives, and special economic zones-to strengthen domestic capabilities. Yet industrial policy carries inherent risks: it can distort markets and does not always succeed in picking winners.

Against this backdrop, on February 11, 2026, the Chips Diplomacy Support Initiative (CHIPDIPLO) consortium held its second public conference in Paris, organized by Institut Montaigne, under the title "Building a Successful Semiconductor Policy Amid Global Frictions". 

This event brought together key stakeholders from Europe, India, South Korea, Japan and the United States to discuss and compare semiconductor policies and their effectiveness.

The conference was opened by Marie-Pierre de Bailliencourt, Managing Director of Institut Montaigne, who emphasized CHIPDIPLO’s role in fostering public-private dialogue and bridging the gap between industrial policy and geopolitical expertise, at a pivotal moment for Europe’s semiconductor strategy.

A panel discussion on "Semiconductor policies: what works, what fails" followed, featuring: 

• Pranay Kotasthane, Deputy Director of the Takshashila Institution; 
• Professor Lee Seungjoo of Chung-Ang University and the East Asia Institute; 
• Tomoshige Nambu, Director for IT Industry at Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry;
• and Dr. Kenneth Weinstein, Japan Chair at the Hudson Institute. 

The discussion was chaired by Mathieu Duchâtel, Director of International Studies at Institut Montaigne.

The conference concluded with a keynote address by Pierre Chastanet, Head of Unit for Microelectronics and Photonics at the European Commission’s DG Connect. He highlighted achievements under the first Chips Act, including investments in European manufacturing and design, cooperation with RTOs to develop next-generation pilot lines, and strengthened crisis management tools. He also outlined some priorities for Chips Act 2.0, notably demand-side policies to support European products, energy efficiency and security guarantees, and future talent needs.

The CHIPDIPLO Project

The Chips Diplomacy Support Initiative (CHIPDIPLO) is an 18-month project led by Institut Montaigne with the Central European Institute of Asian Studies (CEIAS, Prague and Bratislava), the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS, Brussels) and the EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS, Paris and Brussels), and co-funded by the European Union. 

This project aims to help structure European foreign policy in the semiconductor sector, and contributes to the broader strategic objective of constructing a European economic foreign policy. It focuses on strengthening risk management for this strategic industry, promoting a more coordinated approach among the 27 EU Member States, and expanding networks of expertise with key international partners. 

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