TU/e sets sights on becoming the “Semicon University of Europe”
Rector magnificus Silvia Lenaerts outlines why Eindhoven’s university is ready to lead Europe’s chip ambitions
Published on September 30, 2025
Silvia Lenaerts at the Future Chips event, TU Eindhoven. © Bart van Overbeeke
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The Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) wants to become nothing less than the “Semicon University of Europe.” That was the clear message from rector magnificus Silvia Lenaerts in her speech at the launch of the university’s new institute for chips and high-tech systems.
“This ambition is not about claiming a title,” Lenaerts said. “It is about responsibility. Universities must step up, lead, and educate the next generation who will carry our mission forward.”
For more than 15 years, TU/e has been a driving force in chip technology research, Lenaerts stated. From photonics and advanced materials to high-tech systems design, the university has steadily built expertise. Today, more than 700 researchers work under one roof on the next wave of technologies. “We are building not just a new institute, but a new way of working,” Lenaerts emphasized. “One that accelerates the journey from ideas in the lab to technologies that change people’s lives.”
Recent investments back up the words. TU/e is expanding clean rooms, collaborative labs, and facilities where industry and science can meet. The university is also deeply engaged in European initiatives, including the photonics pilot line and the design platform under the EU Chips Act.
A European and global ambition
Still, Lenaerts stressed that TU/e’s vision goes beyond regional and even national borders. “What we are doing here is not just regional, not even national, it is European and in many ways global,” she said. Chips and high-tech systems, she argued, are the engines of Europe’s economy and the keys to solving global challenges, from sustainable energy and climate solutions to secure data and affordable healthcare.
Partnerships play a crucial role in realizing this ambition. TU/e collaborates with imec, KU Leuven, RWTH Aachen, ASML, NXP, Thermo Fisher, and many others. “Alone, each discipline has its strengths,” said Lenaerts. “Together, they can create a symphony that sets the tempo for Europe’s future in chips and high-tech systems.”
The strength of Eindhoven’s high-tech ecosystem lies in its close ties between academia, industry, and entrepreneurship. Lenaerts underlined that connection. “Entrepreneurs innovate, so each partner should do what he or she is best at. Multidisciplinary research at our university, disruptive innovation at our startups and scale-ups, upscaling at our big industrial players.”
She called this a value web: a system where knowledge turns into impact and impact into value for society. In this view, scientists, students, industrial partners, and policymakers all play their part.
European values at the core
But becoming Europe’s leading semicon university is not just about technology and markets. Lenaerts insisted it must be guided by European values. “Here, it is not the haves and the have-nots. We care for each other and try to create earning power for the industry and the public sector in order to include as many people as possible in our welfare model. We need to keep the balance between private profit and public value.”
Lenaerts closed her speech with a call to action. “This day is not just about launching a new institute. It is about launching a connected innovation ecosystem. When we play together, Europe has the power to claim its value-based leadership position.”
The ambition to become the Semicon University of Europe, she said, is within reach precisely because of the collaborative spirit that defines Eindhoven and the wider European ecosystem. “Progress alone is not enough. We need progress with responsibility. Together we will secure the knowledge, the talent, and the team that Europe needs to lead in innovation—not just today, but for decades to come.”
Today, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) launched a new research institute that will focus entirely on the chips of the future. The new institute brings together three existing TU/e departments (the Eindhoven Hendrik Casimir Institute, the High Tech Systems Center, and the Future Chips Flagship) into a single entity. More than 700 researchers will work together on an interdisciplinary basis on semiconductors, quantum technology, photonics, advanced materials, processes, and high-tech systems.