STL Group Partners LLC focuses on AI & deep technology and innovation strategy while RDG Enterprises handles business consulting, finance, and pragmatic growth solutions; biz_ova_bs_3350 is my Instagram media platform, delivering raw, unfiltered insights on business, tech, and finance, with an emphasis on an Independent progressive conservative pragmatic.
For decades, the U.S. semiconductor and tech industry was the undisputed leader in innovation, but today, it stands at a dangerous crossroads—one riddled with government waste, foreign control, and a systemic failure to protect American talent. Billions of dollars are funneled into Research and Development and New product innovation divisions | R&D NPI black holes with no real returns, while the CHIPS Act, meant to revitalize domestic manufacturing and tech innovation has instead become a bureaucratic disaster plagued by inefficiencies and poor oversight. “The Cluster” appears to be a strategic collaboration uniting US, TECH heavyweights to be counterweight to expanding Chinese tech dominance however, it’s just another money grab. More of the same marginalized tech innovation throwing money at the problem will not close the economic technology gap with China. This is eerily similar to what happened to England where a failure to invest in innovation led to stagnation. We can’t afford to repeat the same mistakes.
“I’m not just another typical fab worker or tech innovator chasing a vision or pipe dream. I had insight—I just didn’t share it. Until Now”
“The Cluster” appears to be a strategic collaboration uniting U.S. tech heavyweights to counter expanding Chinese tech dominance; however, it’s just another money grab. More of the same marginalized tech innovation. Throwing money at the problem will not close the economic technology gap with China. This is eerily similar to what happened to England, where a failure to invest in innovation led to stagnation. We can’t afford to repeat the same mistakes.
With 18 years of firsthand experience traveling to China, I have witnessed the stark contrast between China’s strategic approach to semiconductor and tech innovation and America’s mismanagement. I took Chris Lin, a U.S.-educated entrepreneur from the University of Michigan, who had previously secured $500K in venture capital investment, to China with me to explore expansion for his startup venture. What we discovered was an R&D NPI ecosystem far more advanced than many in the West realized at the time. Products were already market-ready with real-life use cases and early adoption looking to scale. Chinese government officials outright dismissed the outdated American technology, demonstrating that their advancements were years ahead.
Returning to the U.S., I saw firsthand how the tech innovation ecosystem and semiconductor funding were mishandled, how government subsidies were wasted, and how industry gatekeepers actively blocked new entrants—particularly U.S. talent. My deep involvement in both R&D NPI and tech innovation, coupled with financial experience in investment flows, gives me a unique vantage point on the systemic failures undermining the American tech and semiconductor industry.
Putting on that financial analyst hat, underlying financial metrics play into the equation. Compliance, policy, geopolitical strategies, and market manipulation can distort those metrics. For example, Trump highlighted this in trade policies with foreign trade partners as a lifelong businessman. In the late ’80s, supply and demand should have dictated pricing and investment flows, but in reality, government intervention, subsidies, and protectionist policies often override pure market forces. It’s about controlling and shaping the narrative, limiting competition, or destroying it altogether.
Highly skilled guest workers gatekeeping: How foreign nationals hijacked U.S. innovation
For years, the highly skilled guest worker was presented as a solution to America’s so-called "STEM talent shortage." The reality? It has become a weaponized gatekeeping system that systematically locks out American engineers, tech innovators, and entrepreneurs while consolidating industry power within a select group. This is not just some natural occurrence. It is a direct result of policy failures that have favored foreign control over fostering homegrown talent.
At the heart of this collapse is a critical national security risk, the displacement of American-born engineers, tech innovators, and disruptors by foreign nationals under the highly skilled guest worker program. Unlike China, which ensures that its deep tech and semiconductor ecosystem is entirely controlled by Chinese-born engineers and tech innovators, the U.S. has outsourced its most valuable industry to foreign gatekeepers who manipulate civil rights laws to shield themselves from accountability.
This intentional monopolization of high-tech jobs creates an insular, exclusive ecosystem of highly skilled guest worker networks that actively block domestic talent from entering the industry while giving those same foreign nationals the power to walk away and take U.S. intellectual property back to their respective countries.
Billions wasted, no real innovation
The CHIPS Act was marketed as a $280 billion lifeline to restore America’s semiconductor and tech dominance. No real, widely adopted innovative breakthroughs have emerged. Instead, it has turned into yet another government slush fund riddled with inefficiencies, slow-moving bureaucracy, and a failure to produce real technological advancements.
Instead of strategically deploying capital into true R&D breakthroughs, funding is funneled into corporate welfare for already bloated deep tech and semiconductor giants. Intel, despite receiving billions in incentives, is struggling to remain competitive against Taiwan’s TSMC and South Korea’s Samsung. Combined with ongoing layoffs and mergers within the tech sector, this signals a consolidation of power as companies streamline operations in a bid to stay competitive, often at the cost of innovation and workforce stability.
The U.S. government’s approach to tech and semiconductor independence is reactive, not strategic.
It is pumping money into an outdated system rather than overhauling the ecosystem for sustainable long-term growth.
Foreign tech and semiconductor firms are using U.S. subsidies to relocate manufacturing plants to avoid tariffs
They are exploiting American funding while keeping real production power offshore.
Trump’s CHIPS Act funding cut is a reality check
The Trump administration recently cut CHIPS Act funding, sending semiconductor executives into a panic. This decision was not arbitrary. It was a response to the program’s lack of tangible innovation and continued foreign dominance. The tech and semiconductor industry, long reliant on government subsidies, is now scrambling as easy money dries up.
Executives who once relied on federal funding now face the reality of competing without endless subsidies. In addition, with the repeal of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) through an executive order signed by President Trump, an anything-goes climate emerges globally to remain relevant, despite the national security risk it may impose. It is profit over people and true purpose. Control and relevancy by any means necessary. Dictate the narrative to appease shareholder sentiment.
China continues expanding its state-backed chip production while the U.S. stumbles over policy failures
This move exposes the dependency problem within the U.S. semiconductor space. If American firms truly aimed for global leadership, they would not need endless subsidies. They would innovate and compete on merit.
A strategic solution: Automation, accountability, and policy overhaul
Aggressive semiconductor automation and domestic manufacturing
Implement AI-driven fabrication processes to reduce dependence on foreign labor.
Incentivize fabless semiconductor startups and tech innovators to truly innovate without reliance on legacy industry gatekeepers.
Establish strict production oversight to prevent intellectual property leaks to China and India.
Enforce accountability on any government funding involving tech innovation
Implement real-time tracking of R&D NPI investments to measure actual market-ready innovation and outcomes. Make this available to tech innovators to track adoption and market scalability for disruption and competition.
Cut off funding to companies that fail to produce measurable technological advancements.
Overhaul highly skilled guest worker policies and protect domestic talent
Implement a five-year industry audit documenting the hiring practices of U.S. semiconductor firms.
Impose strict accountability measures on highly skilled guest worker policies to prioritize American-born engineers.
Blacklist highly skilled guest workers found engaging in IP theft or unauthorized technology transfer that may pose a national security risk.
Conclusion: The time for change is now
The semiconductor and tech industry is not just an economic issue; it is a national security crisis. The unchecked influence of highly skilled guest workers and misguided policies has placed America’s most critical technologies at risk. America cannot afford to let highly skilled guest workers control its most critical technological sector. The time to act is now. Either we take back and reclaim our leadership in the innovation, technology, and semiconductor sector, or we let the world leave us behind.
I was not just another fab technician who moved into R&D. Before that, I had led a ten-person initiative of Chinese diplomats 18 years ago, acting as a liaison on behalf of Shenyang Financial District in Northeast China as their appointed investment promotion consultant. I introduced them to top officials at the Chicago Board of Trade for a strategic partnership in Northeast China. In addition, I advised founder Chris Lin on “Mandy and Pandy,” a technology education startup leveraging a global perspective, and introduced him to the global supply chain to potentially scale.
I understand that real policy is strict and extremely complex. I understand real market value. I understand the power of international ties. You cannot dismiss my knowledge, my dedication, my experience, the 18-plus years of relationships I have built, my deep understanding of Chinese culture, global dynamics, or my vision.
I am not here asking for a seat at someone else’s table. I am here to build my own with my dream team. I am here to create access to capital for my highly skilled team of engineers and tech innovators, drive innovation, be accountable, and bring real-life solutions to a sector that will shape the next 50 to 100 years. The future is not about waiting for permission. It is about making things happen.
“Amid industry shifts, my insights bring clarity on where technology is headed, offering value, not confrontation—just facts that shape the future.”
Read more from Lewis Hunter
Lewis Hunter, Financial Analyst | Strategist | Entrepreneur
Lewis Hunter is a financial analyst, business strategist, and deep-tech consultant with over 20 years of experience in finance, technology, and corporate innovation. He is the founder of STL Group Partners and RDG Enterprises and the co-founder of RDG Enterprises LTD LLC and Biz Over BS, each serving a distinct purpose in the evolving business and tech landscape.
At STL Group Partners, Lewis focuses on AI-driven solutions, deep tech consulting, and cutting-edge innovation in industries such as finance, automation, and semiconductor R&D. His expertise in AI strategy and emerging markets allows corporations to leverage new technology for long-term success.
Through RDG Enterprises, he provides pragmatic consulting on financial strategy, business growth, and risk management, helping companies navigate complex markets and scale efficiently.
Lewis is also the creator of Biz Over BS, a media platform that challenges mainstream narratives and delivers raw, unfiltered insights on business, finance, and technology. His platform serves as a space where entrepreneurs, executives, and investors can access fact-driven content and strategic discussions on economic trends and business evolution.
With a background spanning corporate finance, AI development, international market strategy, and government-backed sustainability programs, Lewis brings a unique perspective on the intersection of business, technology, and policy from a real-time pragmatic experience.
A former executive in global finance and investment strategy, he has also worked in deep-tech R&D, collaborating with elite engineers from Silicon Valley, Singapore, Taiwan, and Samsung to drive innovation in AI and market analytics.
Passionate about creating real impact, Lewis continues to advise organizations on leveraging technology, maximizing financial potential, and positioning for the future. His work is dedicated to building sustainable, tech-driven business solutions that empower companies and entrepreneurs worldwide.
Footnotes:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace - Analysis of U.S. Semiconductor Policy Failures
Brookings Institution - Why CHIPS Act Funding is Failing
IndustryWeek - How Foreign Firms Exploit U.S. Semiconductor Subsidies
The Wall Street Journal - Trump Cuts CHIPS Act Funding, Industry in Chaos
Foreign Policy - China Expands Semiconductor Independence Strategy
National Bureau of Economic Research - The True Impact of H-1B Visa Hiring Biases
Reuters - Meta Faces Lawsuit Over Favoring Foreign H-1B Workers
National Foundation for American Policy - How Civil Rights Laws Are Used to Protect H 1B Workers
The Economist - U.S. Government Failing to Track Semiconductor Subsidy Outcomes
Semiconductor Industry Association - Layoffs in U.S. Semiconductor Sector
The Verge - AI-Driven Fabrication as a Path to U.S. Chip Independence
Politico - H-1B Visa Quotas and Potential Reform
CNBC - TSMC and Samsung’s U.S. Expansion Plans
Wired - How U.S. Tech Talent Is Being Shut Out of Its Own Industry
The Atlantic - National Security Risks in Semiconductor Industry
Harvard Business Review - The Structural Issues Blocking American Tech Talent
TechCrunch - The Hidden Gatekeeping Networks in Silicon Valley
Financial Times - The Rise of China’s State-Controlled Semiconductor Power
Fortune - U.S. Government's Struggles to Manage CHIPS Act Subsidies
Bloomberg - How the Semiconductor Cartel Keeps Innovation Stagnant
UK Government, 2020-UK government’s Dept.for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Feb.2025 President Donald Trump signed and executive order directing the Department of Justice to pause enforcement
