In this way, TSMC suspended shipments to China-based chip designer Sophgo after its semiconductor matched that found in Huawei’s Ascend 910B processor, which is the most advanced available from a Chinese company.
Huawei is on a restricted trade list, which requires suppliers to obtain licenses to ship any goods or technology to the company. Any permission that could help Huawei’s efforts in the field of artificial intelligence is likely to be denied.
Although the case involves this Chinese company directly, this measure also affects other companies and will allow the United States to evaluate whether other firms are diverting chips to Huawei for its AI processor.
A TSMC spokesperson declined to comment beyond saying it was a “law-abiding company … committed to complying with all applicable rules and regulations, including applicable export controls.”
The move comes as U.S. Republican and Democratic lawmakers have expressed concerns about the inadequacy of export controls in China and the Commerce Department’s enforcement of them.
In 2022, the Commerce Department sent information letters to Nvidia and AMD to restrict their ability to export major AI-related chips to China, and chip equipment makers such as Lam Research, Applied Materials and KLA.
Taiwan prohibits TSMC from manufacturing its best technology outside the island
TSMC is the most important company in chip manufacturing in the world and due to its relevance, the United States has seen it as a strategic element in the rebalancing of the supply chain; However, the government of this country wants to take care of its latest generation technology.
JW Kuo, Taiwan’s Minister of Economic Affairs, stated last Friday that while TSMC can build large factories in the United States, Europe or Japan, it cannot transfer its most advanced integration technologies to overseas production facilities.
This means that TSMC cannot manufacture 2-nanometer chips outside of Taiwan, because that technology paradigm is protected by the country’s laws, the official said during a meeting with the Taipei Economic Committee.
With information from Reuters
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