PHOENIX — After spending more than 50 years in Silicon Valley, the country’s largest semiconductor trade conference is establishing a new long-term home in the Silicon Desert.
SEMICON West will begin meeting annually at the Phoenix Convention Center in 2027, changing an earlier plan that would have alternated the event between Phoenix and San Francisco.
The conference will take place in Phoenix from March 30 through April 1, 2027. Events are also scheduled for 2028 and 2029.
SEMICON West brings together companies and industry leaders from across the semiconductor supply chain, including chip manufacturers, equipment makers, material suppliers, researchers and technology developers.
“It is the largest semiconductor trade event in the United States,” said Joe Stockunas, president of SEMI Americas, the organization behind the conference. “SEMICON West brings together the hearts and minds of the entire semiconductor industry supply chain.”
The conference had been held in the Bay Area since its creation in 1970. Phoenix hosted the event for the first time in 2025.
Stockunas said SEMI considered several major semiconductor markets before selecting Phoenix, including Austin, Portland and San Jose. Arizona’s existing manufacturing base, expanding investment and support from state and local leaders helped Phoenix stand out.
“Semiconductor manufacturing has been going on in the Valley for over 40 years,” Stockunas said. “We’ve got a great convention center to host it. We’ve really got ownership within the Phoenix community.”
The conference’s first year in Phoenix exceeded organizers’ expectations. SEMI reported an increase in both registrations and exhibitors compared with the previous year.
“A 50% growth year over year is just unheard of,” Stockunas said. “It was a booming success.”
Arizona economic-development leaders view the decision as another sign that the state has become a major player in the global semiconductor industry.
“It sends a global signal that Arizona has risen as a premier United States tech hub,” said Patrick Ptak at the Arizona Commerce Authority.
Arizona has attracted more than $200 billion in announced semiconductor investments since 2020. That includes Intel’s longstanding operations in Chandler and TSMC’s expanding campus in north Phoenix.
Large manufacturers also tend to attract the equipment makers, material suppliers and other companies needed to support their operations. Stockunas said more than 70 semiconductor-related investments have been announced in the Phoenix area.
“The entire supply chain follows them,” he said. “We’re seeing all kinds of construction going on.”
SEMI expects that expansion to produce significant job growth. Stockunas projects Arizona could have between 40,000 and 60,000 additional semiconductor workers by 2030.
Those positions range from engineering and research jobs to technicians and other advanced-manufacturing roles. Arizona high schools, community colleges and universities are expanding training programs intended to prepare local students and workers for those careers.
“At the end of the day, these are good-paying jobs for Arizonans,” Ptak said. “This is an industry that is planting roots for the long term.”
SEMICON West will still take place in San Francisco in October 2026 before beginning its new annual spring schedule in Phoenix the following year.
