Applied Materials expands Israel R&D hub months after layoffs
New Rehovot facility follows global cuts that affected 100 local employees.
Three months after announcing a global round of layoffs that affected approximately 100 employees in Israel, Applied Materials has inaugurated a major new research and development center at its campus in Rehovot.
The US-based company, one of the world’s largest suppliers of materials engineering solutions for chip manufacturing, said the new facility significantly expands its operating footprint in Israel. The investment is part of what the company describes as “hundreds of millions of dollars” committed to capital and operational expenditures in the country over the past three years.
Located in Rehovot’s Science Park, the campus is one of Applied’s most important global knowledge centers. It brings advanced research laboratories and manufacturing capabilities together with office space in a consolidated complex. The company employs more than 2,200 people in Israel, making it one of the largest multinational technology employers in the country.
“The global semiconductor industry is experiencing a new wave of growth, driven by the ever-increasing demand for AI computing,” said Ofer Greenberger, president of Applied Materials Israel and general manager of the company’s Process Diagnostics and Control Group. He described the Israeli center as a “strategic anchor and critical knowledge hub” for the company worldwide.
Applied’s Israeli operations focus on process control systems and analytical software, technologies essential to improving yield and precision in advanced semiconductor production. Among the products developed and manufactured in Israel are the company’s eBeam-based metrology systems, including the recently launched PROVision 10, designed to improve yields in complex 3D logic and memory chips through sub-nanometer resolution and deep imaging capabilities.
Beyond research and manufacturing, Applied emphasizes its economic footprint. The company reports annual local procurement spending exceeding $450 million, reflecting what it calls a “local-for-local” supply chain strategy that supports Israeli suppliers. Over the past five years, it says, its local workforce has grown by more than 30 per cent. It plans to recruit 300 additional employees this year.
