Columbus and Central Ohio: At the Heart of America’s New Tech-Industrial Era
In 2023, we wrote about how Intel’s $20 billion chip manufacturing facility in New Albany, just outside Columbus, Ohio, would catalyze a historic transformation—one that would turn the region into a cornerstone of America’s next-generation tech economy. Since then, developments have continued at a rapid pace.
Since then, Intel has encountered some recent headwinds with its advanced 18A chip production and challenges in securing external customers for its foundry services. However, the overall trajectory of this project and the tech ecosystem forming around it is stronger than ever.
Despite the turbulence, one thing is abundantly clear: Intel isn’t going anywhere, and neither is the momentum behind Ohio’s emergence as a semiconductor powerhouse.
Recent Challenges at Intel
Earlier this year, reports emerged that Intel was struggling to achieve viable yield rates with its 18A process—its most advanced manufacturing node. The 18A chip is key to Intel’s success and reestablishing leadership in chip fabrication, enabling the supply of cutting-edge components to customers like Amazon and Microsoft.
However, as of mid-2025, Intel has not yet secured any confirmed external foundry clients for the 18A node. This has raised questions about the near-term viability of Intel Foundry Services (IFS), its customer-facing manufacturing business.
Advanced manufacturing is notoriously complex, and even dominant players like TSMC and Samsung have faced similar hurdles during technology transitions.
A Flood of Support: SoftBank and the U.S. Government Step In
Crucially, support for Intel has not waned. In fact, it has intensified.
Just this month, August 2025, SoftBank invested $2 billion into Intel, acquiring approximately a 2% stake. This came after discussions of potentially spinning off Intel’s foundry unit. The SoftBank investment was a vote of confidence—not just in Intel, but in the future of U.S.-based semiconductor production.
Just days later, the U.S. Government converted $8.5 billion in CHIPS Act support into a 9.9% non-voting equity stake in the company. This move made the federal government Intel’s single largest shareholder—underscoring the strategic importance of the company to national security, industrial policy, and economic competitiveness.
Whether Intel hits its initial timelines or not, the site in Ohio is guaranteed to become a semiconductor hub. If Intel doesn’t lead it forward, another player will. The location is simply too strategic, the infrastructure too developed, and the national interest too high to let it go dormant.
Columbus and Central Ohio – At The Center of it all
Intel selected Ohio for a reason—actually, for several. The region offers an abundant and skilled workforce, a low cost of doing business, access to major transportation networks, energy grid capacity, proximity to raw materials, deep public-private partnerships, and a geographic location with the least amount of seismic movements. Those fundamentals haven’t changed.
In fact, with Intel’s site infrastructure well underway, Ohio’s momentum has only grown. Suppliers, engineering firms, logistics providers, and housing developers are all expanding operations or exploring entry into the market. This isn’t a tech experiment—it’s a new industrial base taking shape before our eyes. In January 2025, defense technology innovator Anduril Industries announced its decision to establish Arsenal‑1, a massive five‑million‑square‑foot advanced manufacturing facility near Columbus, Ohio.
Even more importantly, semiconductors have become a matter of national security. Global supply chain disruptions and geopolitical risk have shown how dangerous it is for the U.S. to rely on Taiwan for chips.
Columbus now sits at the center of an unstoppable American comeback in advanced manufacturing.
What This Means for Columbus—and Real Estate
The writing is on the wall:
- A growing population of engineers, operators, and support professionals
- Increased demand for housing, services, and infrastructure
- Long-term growth in multifamily, commercial, and mixed-use development
- A new era of stable jobs and upward mobility for local residents
We are positioning our firm and our investors to benefit from this transformation—strategically acquiring and developing real estate assets that will serve the growing needs of the region.
