The announcement of a major breakthrough by a Chinese chipmaker has sparked widespread attention and controversy at home and abroad. On the one hand, the independent innovation of domestic enterprises has achieved phased results, which is a key step towards realizing chip independence; On the other hand, foreign media questioned the source of China's chip technology and suspected that there was an intellectual property dispute, which intensified the new climax of the Sino-US science and technology war.
Breakthrough progress of Chinese chip companies
In recent years, Chinese chip companies have made breakthroughs in independent innovation. In August 2022, Chinese chipmaker Yangtze River Storage Technology Co., Ltd. announced that it had successfully mass-produced China's first NAND flash memory chip with 7nm process. This breakthrough breaks the long-term technological blockade of China in the field of memory chips, marking that China's memory chip manufacturing process is close to the international advanced level.
Huawei, another Chinese chip giant, has also made significant progress in making chips autonomous. In September 2020, Huawei launched the Kirin 9000 series 5G chips based on TSMC's 5nm process, reaching the industry-leading level in terms of AI computing capabilities and 5G communication capabilities. Despite being severely affected by U.S. sanctions, Huawei is still working tirelessly to achieve autonomy and control in key chip technologies.
Foreign media questioned the source of China's chip technology
The breakthrough of Chinese chip companies has naturally aroused doubts and suspicions from foreign media. Some Western media suspect that Chinese companies' chip technology advances may be suspected of stealing intellectual property. They believe that Chinese companies may have improperly acquired advanced chip-making technology from the United States and other countries.
For example, in December 2020, it was reported that the Chinese Academy of Sciences claimed to have made a breakthrough in 5nm lithography technology, but it was later revealed that this is only a laser lithography technology, which is not the same as extreme ultraviolet lithography technology, and cannot truly achieve mass production of 5nm chips. This exaggeration and obfuscation have exacerbated doubts about China's chip technology.
The Sino-US technology war has escalated
The contest between China and the United States in the field of chips has escalated into a technological war, and both sides are increasing their efforts to make chips independent. On the one hand, the United States has continuously increased sanctions on Chinese companies such as Huawei, restricting their access to key chip equipment and technology. On the other hand, the Chinese government is also vigorously promoting the localization process of chips and encouraging enterprises to increase R&D investment.
In August 2022, the U.S. Congress passed the "CHIPS Act", allocating $52 billion to support the development of the domestic chip industry, of which $28 billion directly subsidizes chip manufacturers. The United States is also expanding the scope of export controls on Chinese companies such as Huawei, cutting off their access to advanced chip equipment and technology.
China, on the other hand, is increasing financial support to encourage companies to increase investment in chip research and development. In 2020, the Chinese government issued a number of supportive policies, proposing to accelerate the research and development of third-generation semiconductor materials and process technologies, accelerate breakthroughs in core chip technologies such as memory and CPU, and promote the high-quality development of the integrated circuit industry.
The confrontation between the two camps intensified
In the field of chips, the camps of China and the United States have shown a trend of confrontation. On the one hand, the United States has increased sanctions against Chinese companies such as Huawei, and on the other hand, it has also vigorously supported the development of the local chip industry in China. China, on the other hand, is increasing its efforts to innovate independently, and is also actively exploring the international market and seeking to break through the blockade.
For example, IMEC, a Belgian semiconductor research institute, used to work with Chinese companies such as Huawei, but later suspended the project due to U.S. export controls. IMEC is also actively expanding its partners in Europe and elsewhere to circumvent U.S. sanctions.
The technology war between China and the United States has become white-hot, and the chip issue has become a new focus of controversy. The breakthrough progress of Chinese enterprises has been questioned by foreign media, the confrontation between the two camps has intensified, and the scientific and technological war is about to break out. The Sino-US science and technology war will continue to escalate, and both sides will increase chip autonomy, and who can control the commanding heights of chips will determine the ultimate ownership of the science and technology war. In this war without gunpowder, Chinese companies are making unremitting efforts to achieve independent and controllable key chip technologies, but the road ahead will still be full of challenges.