Recently, China's chip industry is ushering in a wave of expected development. According to the data, in the first quarter of 2023, the amount of semiconductor manufacturing equipment imported by China surged by nearly 70% year-on-year, especially the import volume of lithography machines was as high as 32 units, a year-on-year increase of 1.8 times. This undoubtedly indicates that China's chip technology is constantly making breakthroughs and is about to usher in a new round of major breakthroughs.
First, the "core" of domestic mobile phones is strong
The most direct driving force for this round of chip technology breakthroughs comes from the rise of domestic mobile phone brands. In the past few years, with the successive launch of the Kirin 9000S and Kirin 9010 chips equipped with Huawei Mate 60 and Pura 70 series mobile phones, domestic mobile phones have begun to get rid of their dependence on foreign chips, and their self-research capabilities have been continuously improved. These strong domestic chips are not only comparable to foreign leaders such as Apple and Qualcomm in terms of performance, but also highlight China's rapid progress in the field of chip design.
At the same time, the demand for high-performance computing chips from emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence is also increasing, which further promotes the accelerated innovation of domestic chip companies. In this context, the increasing demand for related semiconductor manufacturing equipment by Chinese wafer manufacturing enterprises, especially the surge in the import of lithography machines, is undoubtedly a harbinger of new breakthroughs in China's chip technology.
Second, the 3-nanometer Kirin chip is gradually approaching
Judging from the data released by the General Administration of Customs of China, in the context of the surge in China's imported lithography machines in the first quarter, the industry generally expects that China is about to achieve a major breakthrough in 3nm chip manufacturing.
As a new "milestone" in the development of chip process technology, the 3nm process can not only further improve the integration and performance of chips, but also greatly improve energy efficiency, which is particularly critical for high-performance application scenarios such as artificial intelligence and 5G. And it is this strong market demand that will inevitably accelerate the pace of China's technological breakthroughs in this field.
It is worth mentioning that in the previous Kirin 9000S and 9010 chips, Chinese chip design companies have shown strong R&D strength. From the perspective of performance parameters, these two chips are completely comparable to top foreign chips, and even have an advantage in some indicators. Therefore, it is more logical to achieve a breakthrough in the 3nm process on this basis.
At the same time, domestic wafer manufacturers such as SMIC and Huali Microelectronics are also increasing investment and actively deploying advanced process technologies. It is expected that in the next 1-2 years, China is expected to achieve mass production of 3-nanometer chips, and will fully catch up with international chip giants such as Qualcomm and Apple. This is undoubtedly a major positive for enhancing China's position in the global chip industry chain.
Third, the display technology has also ushered in a domestic breakthrough
In addition to chip technology, China is also achieving important breakthroughs in the field of display. In the past few decades, both mobile phones and TVs have almost relied on the display screens of overseas brands such as Samsung. Although these foreign display technologies have good advantages in terms of image quality and detail, they have been unable to cope with key issues such as halo suppression.
Recently, the domestic display giant TCL has successfully overcome this problem that has plagued the industry for many years with its self-developed HVA wide-angle low reflection screen and global halo control technology. The new generation of Q10K series TVs are equipped with this technology,Not only greatly improves the picture quality performance,It also greatly improves the effect in dark scenes,Let users have a better viewing experience。
This marks an important breakthrough in China's display field and completely ends the "hegemonic monopoly" of overseas display technology in China. It is worth mentioning that TCL's innovative technology has not only attracted the attention of international brands such as Samsung and Sony, but also injected new impetus into the competitiveness of China's electronic information industry in the global market.
It can be said that China has made remarkable progress in the two key technology fields of chips and displays recently, which not only reflects the strong strength of domestic enterprises in innovation, but also indicates that China's scientific and technological strength is accelerating towards the high-end. These disruptive technological breakthroughs will surely lay a solid foundation for the future development of China's information industry.
Fourth, promote China's manufacturing to a new level
Behind this series of technological breakthroughs, it also reflects the overall trend of China's manufacturing industry towards high-end and intelligent.
First of all, China's technological innovation in the field of chips and displays has not only enhanced the core competitiveness of related industries, but also brought strong scientific and technological momentum to the entire manufacturing industry. For example, with the core chip independently developed by domestic mobile phones, they not only overtake in performance, but also better adapt to the needs of emerging application scenarios. At the same time, the breakthrough of domestic display technology also allows more manufacturing enterprises to obtain better core components and enhance the overall product competitiveness.
Secondly, the emergence of these innovative achievements has further enhanced the confidence and determination of China's manufacturing industry. For a long time, China's manufacturing industry has been facing technical bottlenecks, but now with the breakthrough of domestic chips and display technology, this dilemma is gradually being solved. This not only stimulates the motivation of more manufacturing companies to continue to innovate, but also makes the "Made in China" brand rebuild a more positive image in the global market.
Finally, these innovations will also drive the overall upgrading of China's manufacturing industry. Taking domestic chips as an example, the launch of 3nm and even more advanced processes will surely promote the development of electronic information and other industries to a higher end. In the field of display, the rise of domestic technology has injected new vitality into Chinese TVs, mobile phones and other products, making "Made in China" more competitive in the global market.
In general, the breakthrough progress of China's chip and display technology not only marks that the related industry has entered a new stage of development, but also will become a powerful engine to promote China's manufacturing industry to take off again. In the future, we have reason to believe that under this good situation, Made in China will occupy a more important position in the global industrial chain.
Fifth, the soldiers and horses will create brilliance again
Although such an exciting technological breakthrough has been made, we must also be soberly aware that there is still a large gap in some key areas of China's chip and display industry.
Taking chip manufacturing as an example, although the 3nm process is already within reach, compared with the world's leading level, China still has a certain gap in some advanced processes such as 7nm and below. This requires the mainland to increase its efforts to tackle key core technologies and continue to improve its independent innovation capabilities. At the same time, it is equally important to improve the supporting industrial chain and strengthen talent training, and only by achieving the coordinated development of upstream and downstream can we ensure that technological breakthroughs can be transformed into real productivity as soon as possible.
In the field of display, although domestic technology has surpassed international giants such as Samsung in some indicators, in order to truly gain a firm foothold in the global market, it is still necessary to further improve product performance and quality, and continue to expand market share. At the same time, improving the independent and controllable ability of the industrial chain and reducing the dependence on foreign key materials and equipment are also problems that need to be solved in the future.
In general, the technological breakthrough of China's chip and display industry is only the beginning, and we also need to promote independent innovation more continuously and systematically to continuously enhance the overall strength of the industrial chain. Only in this way can we ensure that these technological innovations are truly transformed into a solid foundation to support the high-quality development of China's manufacturing industry.
To this end, the government, enterprises and scientific research institutions need to increase investment to form a strong synergy. On the one hand, the government should introduce more targeted support policies to effectively create a good environment conducive to innovation and development; On the other hand, enterprises should unswervingly take the road of independent innovation, have the courage to work key core technologies, and constantly improve their position in the global industrial chain. At the same time, scientific research institutions should further deepen the close integration of production, education, research and application, and ensure that scientific and technological achievements are transformed into real productive forces as soon as possible.
Only by working together upstream and downstream can we ensure that the technological advantages of China's chip and display industry are truly transformed into economic strength and industrial competitiveness. I believe that as long as we make persistent efforts and forge ahead, we will be able to make greater breakthroughs in these key areas and promote China's manufacturing industry to create new glories.