News Join our Community of 625,000+ Engineers Register News Ongoing Chip Shortages Lead U.S. Automakers to Ask for Government Intervention January 22, 2021 by Luke James As a chip shortage batters the global automotive industry, U.S. automakers plead for government intervention. An ongoing shortage in the global supply of crucial semiconductors is disrupting the automotive industry as it battles to keep up with a sudden surge in demand. The supply bottleneck has been caused by several factors, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic which disrupted production in the first half of 2020. This directly impacted manufacturing investment and caused fluctuations in any other industry that relies on semiconductors. At the same time, consumer demand for automobiles fell, causing semiconductor manufacturers to prioritize non-automotive applications.