Sherman, Texas, June 16, 2026 (Global News Wire) — Coherent Corp. (NYSE: COHR), a global leader in photonics, announced today that it has signed a letter of intent to receive up to $50 million in direct funding support from the U.S. Department of Commerce under the CHIPS and Science Act to expand its world-leading 6-inch indium phosphide (InP) semiconductor manufacturing facility located in Sherman, Texas.

The investment will support growing demand for optical networking technologies powering AI data centers and further strengthen the long-established and recently expanded partnership between Coherent and NVIDIA. Upon project completion, the Sherman facility is expected to create over 1,000 jobs, including more than 550 positions directly engaged in advanced manufacturing, engineering, and technical roles. This expansion will double manufacturing production space and triple wafer production capacity, significantly increasing domestic production of critical AI technologies and reinforcing U.S. leadership in driving the technologies of the AI economy.

The CHIPS award builds on approximately $20 million in prior support provided by the Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund and the Sherman Economic Development Corporation.

This announcement coincides with a groundbreaking ceremony later today at the Coherent Sherman facility with NVIDIA, federal and state officials, and local community leaders. The proposed CHIPS investment, NVIDIA partnership, and Sherman expansion together underscore the increasingly critical role of photonics innovation in supporting AI infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, and U.S. technological leadership.

Coherent Chief Executive Officer Jim Anderson stated: "AI is transforming our world, driving a new era of American manufacturing to build infrastructure powering future AI data centers. Semiconductor photonic devices are a fundamental component of AI infrastructure, enabling the high-speed connectivity required to move unprecedented volumes of data between processors, memory, and systems. This investment expands America's capacity to manufacture critical AI technologies, creates high-value jobs, and reinforces U.S. leadership in advanced manufacturing, photonics, and innovation. We thank NVIDIA for their partnership, Commerce Secretary Lutnick, Bill Frauenhofer and the CHIPS Program Office team, Governor Abbott, Adriana Cruz of the Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund, and Kent Sharp of the Sherman Economic Development Corporation for their continued support as they invest with us in expanding capacity and future growth."

**Expanding AI Infrastructure Foundation**

The Coherent Sherman facility manufactures indium phosphide (InP)-based photonic devices, a specialized semiconductor material used to create high-performance optical networking components that support modern AI systems.

The facility is home to the world's first and highest-volume 6-inch indium phosphide manufacturing platform, providing the scale necessary to support the rapid growth in demand for AI-driven optical interconnect technology. As AI workloads continue to expand, these technologies become increasingly critical for overcoming data movement bottlenecks and supporting higher-performance, more energy-efficient computing architectures.

The expansion will increase advanced wafer fabrication equipment and cleanroom capacity to produce indium phosphide-based photonic devices at scale, solidifying Sherman's position as one of the world's leading centers for optical networking innovation and production.

**Strengthening U.S. Manufacturing Leadership**

Coherent's expansion will strengthen domestic supply chain resilience and extend U.S. manufacturing capabilities for strategically important semiconductor and photonics technologies.

Bill Frauenhofer, Executive Director of Semiconductor Investment and Innovation at the U.S. Department of Commerce, stated: "Indium phosphide photonics is critical to enabling high-speed data transmission in AI systems, telecommunications, and advanced networks. CHIPS incentives will expand production capacity, strengthen the U.S. semiconductor supply chain, and accelerate the advancement of next-generation critical optical technologies."

**Partnerships Driving Future Growth**

Coherent and NVIDIA have collaborated for over 20 years, advancing technologies to support increasingly complex computing and networking architectures. The Sherman expansion reflects the increasingly important role of U.S. manufacturing capacity, resilient supply chains, and photonics innovation as AI systems continue to scale.

NVIDIA Founder and Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang stated: "AI factories are the infrastructure of the new industrial revolution. Connecting millions of GPUs into a thinking machine requires optical technology designed for scale, speed, and energy efficiency. Coherent has been a crucial partner to NVIDIA for over 20 years, and its expansion of indium phosphide manufacturing in Texas will help strengthen the American supply chain to meet the AI infrastructure demands that the world is racing to build."

Combined with the proposed CHIPS award, NVIDIA partnership, and Sherman expansion, Coherent is positioned to help meet accelerating demand for AI infrastructure growth while strengthening America's role in global advanced photonics, optical networking, and next-generation computing technology supply chains.

**About Coherent**

Coherent is a global leader in photonics. The company leverages photonics to drive innovation. Industry leaders in the data center, communications, and industrial markets rely on Coherent's industry-leading technologies to drive their own innovation and growth. Founded in 1971 and operating in more than 20 countries, Coherent provides customers with the industry's broadest and deepest technology portfolio, unmatched supply chain resilience, and global scale to help solve the most challenging technology problems. For more information, visit coherent.com.