Flexible electronics are poised to become a desirable new feature as bendable phones and wearable tech gain traction and public attention. But the technology itself is garnering heavy investment from the U.S. government. The White House released a statement on Aug 28 detailing its $171 million investment in advancing next-generation flexible hybrid electronics manufacturing, primarily focusing on a Manufacturing Innovation Hub in San Jose, California.

The technology itself could have a myriad of uses from “smart bandages” to self-monitoring weapons system. Health advancements, military aid, and transportation developments are just a few of the ways in which flexible electronics can morph the tech of the future.

In a partnership with the FlexTech Alliance— a public-private manufacturing consortium based in San Jose, California —the Manufacturing Innovation Institute and the U.S. government will attempt to “secure U.S. leadership in next-generation bendable and wearable electronic devices,” according to Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter. The Manufacturing Innovation Institute for Flexible Hybrid Electronics consists of f 162 companies, nonprofits, labs, and universities. It is the seventh of nine manufacturing innovation institutes already launched by the Obama administration and “represents the latest outgrowth of the Pentagon's commitment to build collaborative innovation hubs throughout the tech community.”