Pragmatic: ‘More to be done’ says boss of British chipmaker
The boss of British chipmaker Pragmatic has said the progress has been “really good” since the launch of the government’s semiconductor strategy exactly one year ago, but there is still more to be done.
Dave Moore, who was appointed chief executive of Pragmatic last April, told CityAM that he is pleased with the UK’s progress in supporting the domestic chip industry, saying, “the progress has been really good over the year.”
In May 2023, the UK government published its semiconductor strategy, which drew some criticism at the time.
Since then, it has established the Semiconductor Advisory Panel, joined the EU’s Chips Joint Undertaking scheme and expanded the mandate for the UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) to include semiconductors.
The latter decision signalled a “forward momentum” for the industry and especially for Pragmatic said Moore, a former Intel and Micron executive based in Silicon Valley.
UKIB injected £60m worth of equity into Pragmatic late last year, as part of a £182m series D raise, the largest ever European semiconductor venture funding round.
Based in the northeast of England, Pragmatic is using the investment to increase the speed of its production and create new manufacturing lines in its Durham site, one of which opened in March.
It designs and makes chips, known as ‘integrated circuits’ (ICs) that are thinner than a human hair and are significantly cheaper and faster to produce than silicon chips.
“Being able to have UKIB co-lead that was obviously a big needle mover in terms of helping to move the UK industry forward as well,” explained Moore.
However, he said there is “more to be done” to support Britain’s flourishing non-silicon semiconductor industry.
Moore highlighted the need for further investment incentives, strategic procurement support and talent development to ensure both the company’s and UK’s competitive growth.
“I see there are opportunities not just for Pragmatic but for a lot of UK companies to be able to come together under Strategic Procurement programmes; the government is a huge customer at the end of the day.
“It’s a difficult challenge to address, but I think there’s a lot of opportunity there too.”
Moore added that while chip companies must take responsibility for developing talent, partnerships with policymakers to remove barriers are also important.
“I think with the right optimistic view, the right focused investments, we can make a very important play in terms of the global stage,” he said.
Currently Pragmatic has two fabs, with another one or two lines set to complete over the next 18 months. At the end of 2025 it will have ramped at least three lines, with a total capacity of tens of billions of ICs per year.
With this, it aims to service global customer demand, which is increasing due to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, and to turn a profit that it can reinvest. In its Durham park, Pragmatic has space for a total of nine fab lines.
Moore said: “Our objective is to be a global leader in flexible IC semiconductor manufacturing, which means that we’re going to have the ability to scale out multiple fabs here in the UK and beyond.”
But his near term focus is to accelerate capacity and grow the company in the UK.
“Right now we’re very focused on scaling in the UK,” he said. “We’re very bullish about our opportunity to do that, tapping into the talent we have in the northeast, tapping into the broad support we have from our investors, from policymakers to really advance this unique technology here in the UK and then try and expand the footprint.”
Founder and director of Pragmatic, Scott White, previously suggested that his company would be better off in the US, a feeling shared by others. But, speaking to CityAM recently, he insisted he is “committed to the UK”.