With the rapid development of science and technology, the importance of chips, as the "heart" of modern electronic products, is self-evident. In recent years, the development of domestic chips has encountered unprecedented challenges, which has brought a severe peak trap to the entire technology industry. The hot sales of Apple's new iPhone 15 have once again aroused people's attention and thinking about the prospects of domestic chips. In this context, it is necessary for us to objectively analyze the dilemma faced by domestic chips and explore ways to break through.
Domestic chips have encountered a "stuck neck" dilemma
In recent years, due to the intensification of the scientific and technological confrontation between China and the United States, the United States has imposed a severe chip technology blockade on the mainland, which not only restricts the export of advanced chips, but also cuts off the mainland's access to key equipment and software. This has undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to the development of domestic chips.
According to incomplete statistics, more than 90% of the mainland's chip demand depends on imports, especially high-end chips in the field of consumer electronics such as mobile phones and computers, which are completely dependent on foreign manufacturers. This "stuck" situation not only restricts the development of the mainland's science and technology industry, but also seriously threatens the country's information security.
Consumer electronics is the breakthrough
In the face of adversity, we are not helpless. Consumer electronics is an important entry point for domestic chips to break through.
Smartphones are the most popular consumer electronics today, and Apple's iPhone series is favored by consumers at home and abroad. The popularity of the iPhone 15 is a testament to this.
It is worth noting that the iPhone 15 uses 5nm chips produced by TSMC, and TSMC has also begun to OEM chips for domestic mobile phone manufacturers. This opens a breakthrough door for domestic chips.
With the help of the technical strength of international giants such as TSMC, we can take the lead in the field of consumer electronics and gradually master the key aspects of chip design and manufacturing. Once a breakthrough is made in this field, it can lay the foundation for future penetration into the field of high-end chips.
Consumer electronics have relatively mild requirements for the performance of chips and low technical thresholds, which gives domestic chip companies a "blue ocean" market that they can quickly enter. As long as we make great efforts in this field, cultivate a group of excellent chip design talents, and master key process technologies, the penetration into the high-end chip field will be like a tiger in the future.
Increase investment to achieve autonomy and control
Throughout the development process of the international chip industry, it is not difficult to find that breakthroughs cannot be made without persistent huge investment. Taking the United States as an example, the government allocates billions of dollars every year for chip research and development, and vigorously supports local chip companies through tax incentives and other means.
The mainland's investment in this area is clearly insufficient. According to statistics, the R&D investment in the mainland chip industry in 2021 will only be 96 billion yuan, which is equivalent to the R&D budget of Intel Corporation. Such investment is difficult to support the long-term development of the mainland chip industry.
We urgently need to increase financial investment in chip research and development, and concentrate on playing the two trump cards of talent and technology. On the one hand, we must further improve the chip talent training system and deliver more high-quality compound talents for the chip industry; On the other hand, we should focus on key areas such as chip design and advanced technology, and concentrate resources to carry out basic research and innovation.
Only in this way can we truly master the core technology of the chip industry, achieve independent control, and fundamentally solve the problem of "stuck neck". Otherwise, our technology industry will always rely on the monopoly technology of others, and it will be difficult to truly achieve independent innovation.
Open cooperation to build an ecosystem
The chip industry chain is intricate and interlocking, and any problem in any link will affect the overall development. It is difficult for a single company or region to be autonomous and controllable. We need to build a complete chip ecosystem through open cooperation.
We need to strengthen the coordination and cooperation between the upstream and downstream of the chip industry chain. Upstream design enterprises should work closely with downstream manufacturing enterprises to achieve seamless connection between chip design and process; Packaging and testing companies should also work closely with it to ensure the quality and reliability of chip products. Only by interlocking the industrial chain can we truly create a complete domestic chip industry chain.
We need to actively attract international chip giants to invest and build factories in China. TSMC, Samsung and other companies not only have advanced manufacturing processes, but also take a leading position in chip design, packaging and testing. If they can be attracted to establish production bases in the mainland, it will greatly promote the development of the mainland's chip industry.
We need to strengthen cooperation with countries along the "Belt and Road" in the chip industry. Most of these countries are in the middle stages of industrialization, and the demand for chips is growing rapidly. If we can establish a close industrial alliance with it, we can form a huge chip market, thereby providing a broad space for the development of domestic chip companies.
We also need to actively participate in the development of standards for the global chip industry. Standards are the "rules of the game" for industrial development, and mastering the right to formulate standards is equivalent to mastering the right to speak. We should encourage domestic enterprises to actively participate in international standards organizations and contribute their wisdom in the process of standard formulation, so as to improve the mainland's voice and influence in the global chip industry.
The development of domestic chips is facing severe challenges, but as long as we make up our minds and persevere, we will be able to finally achieve a breakthrough. It is believed that through the strong support of the government, the independent innovation of enterprises and open cooperation, the mainland chip industry will eventually usher in a new spring.