Engineering the future of semiconductors with atomic precision and AI
Vahid Vahedi gives his talk, “Engineering the future of semiconductors with atomic precision and AI” on October 22, 2025.
EECS Colloquium
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
310 Sutardja Dai Hall (Banatao Auditorium)
2:00 – 3:00 pm
Vahid Vahedi
Senior Vice President, Chief Technology and Sustainability Officer at Lam Research
Bio
Vahid Vahedi is senior vice president, chief technology and sustainability officer at Lam Research. In this role, he is responsible for driving innovation breakthroughs that define the next generation of semiconductors and result in the expansion of the company’s portfolio of best-in-class products and solutions. He also leads the Company’s sustainability programs and execution of responsible business practices to support net-zero goals. Vahid has nearly 30 years of experience in technology and business leadership. Joining Lam in 1995, he was previously the senior vice president and general manager of the company’s Etch Business Unit, where he was responsible for the launch of Sense.i®, Lam’s most innovative etch platform to date. Prior to that, he held a range of leadership positions at the company, supporting product management and marketing for the Etch Business Unit, as well as overseeing development of Lam’s dielectric etch, conductor, and 3DIC etch innovations.
Vahid earned his Ph.D., M.S., and B.S. degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California at Berkeley.
Abstract
The semiconductor industry is entering a new era. The explosive growth of AI is driving exponential demand for advanced logic and memory devices, requiring lateral and vertical scaling, complex 3D architecture design, all while managing cost efficiency and prioritizing sustainability goals. The complexity of manufacturing next-generation chips is quickly surpassing what human expertise alone can manage. In this presentation, Vahid Vahedi, Lam Research’s Chief Technology Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer, outlines how the industry is responding with a transformative approach.
With breakthroughs in atomic-scale precision technologies, chipmakers are redefining the physical boundaries of semiconductor manufacturing. At the same time, advances in human-computer collaboration are transforming hardware design, process engineering, and tool maintenance. Together, these developments are accelerating innovation in research and development, enabling higher yields and greater efficiency to meet the demands of increasingly complex nodes. Drawing on real-world examples, Vahid illustrates how this integrated approach is already having an impact across the semiconductor value chain.
As the industry advances, it opens new frontiers for technology breakthroughs and creates exciting opportunities for the next generation of engineers and scientists. The future of chipmaking will be defined not only by what we build but by how we build it: through purposeful, interdisciplinary collaboration between the industry and academia that drives progress at the atomic scale.