The Biden administration is considering adding several Chinese semiconductor firms to a blacklist due to their connections with Huawei. This potential move signals a further escalation in the US strategy to limit Beijing’s advancements in AI and chip manufacturing. It also intensifies pressure on Huawei, which has made strides despite existing sanctions, including developing a smartphone processor last year.
Reports from Bloomberg indicate that these entities might soon find themselves on the US Entity List, a move that would require special permission for American businesses to engage with them.
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Among the companies potentially facing blacklisting are chipmakers Qingdao Sien, SwaySure, Shenzhen Pensun Technology, and ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT). The US government is also contemplating sanctions on Shenzhen Pengjin High-Tech and SiCarrier for allegedly aiding Huawei in acquiring restricted equipment.
While the Commerce Department hasn’t disclosed additional evidence linking these companies to Huawei, it holds the authority to sanction businesses perceived as a future threat to national security. Timing for any decisions depends on the evolving relations between the US and China.
There’s been buzz about China’s ambitious investments in Huawei, aiming to bolster its chip manufacturing capabilities to rival industry giants like Intel and Qualcomm. Huawei’s recent accomplishment in developing the Kirin 9000S chip on its own advanced process technology is a testament to this effort, defying earlier predictions by US experts.
The potential blacklist addition comes amidst ongoing discussions on adjusting China tariffs and considering increased duties on older-generation chips. Huawei’s inclusion on the entity list in 2019 restricted its access to American technology, but recent developments suggest China’s efforts to strengthen its domestic semiconductor supply chain are still reliant on foreign components.
What do you think will happen next in this ongoing situation?
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