Disclaimer: The content of this article is written with authoritative information combined with personal opinions, and the source of the literature and screenshots have been marked at the end of the article, please be aware.
As we all know, today's DJI drones, like Huawei mobile phones, have become the "light of domestic products". However, this rising momentum has also been met with the envy and jealousy of other countries.
For example, after Japan dismantled a DJI drone, it was found that most of its chips came from overseas, and the United States immediately launched sanctions against DJI. In other words, will DJI follow in Huawei's footsteps? Or will it fight your way out again?
Japan dismantled the machine, and the United States sanctioned
In September 2023, a Japanese agency dismantled a DJI drone.
According to the teardown report, 80% of the chips in it are imported from the West. For example, Qualcomm's wireless communication chips, Ambarella's image processing chips, etc. At first glance, DJI seems to be "made in all countries".
Faced with this situation, the United States suddenly began to think carefully. Soon, the U.S. began imposing tariffs on DJI's products. At the same time, the U.S. side also claimed $837 million from DJI for "patent infringement".
In addition, the United States has also blacklisted DJI, prohibiting a large number of American companies from cooperating with DJI. In short, the United States has used all the sanctions that can be used.
It stands to reason that DJI is just a drone builder, so why is the United States so jealous of it? Is DJI really a "threat" to the United States?
Why is the United States afraid of drones?
Dissect the phenomenon to see the essence. From a military perspective, DJI does have a weighty position in the hearts of Americans. Of course, not only DJI, any big drone company will make it difficult for the United States to sleep.
For example, the image transmission function of these drones can bring the effect of over-the-horizon. In this case, it can be used for front-line reconnaissance on the battlefield.
If an artillery member is equipped with a drone, use the image transmission function to lock on to the opponent. Thousands of meters away, you can shoot into the soul, making people unguardable.
If you let the drone hang a grenade, you can immediately turn on the mode of inspection and fighting. If the target value is high, simply load the drone with high explosives and let it "suicidal charge". In this way, the opposite target is also reimbursed.
Drones that have shown their skills on the battlefield between Russia and Ukraine
Regarding examples of drones being put into battle, the Russian-Ukrainian war is undoubtedly on the list.
The Russia-Ukraine war is known as the largest drone war in human history, with as many as 4,000 drones invested by both sides. In particular, many civilian-grade UAVs have been "converted from civilian to military" and have become the main force of reconnaissance and attack on both sides.
Among these drones, the most prominent is the "Shahid-136" suicide drone provided by Iran to Russia.
This kind of drone is known as a small aerial scooter, and its warhead reaches 50 kilograms, which is equivalent to the power of 100 kilograms of explosives. Once released, destroying two or three floors is not a problem.
As for the biggest advantage of this type of UAV, it is the low cost. Like those parts, you can buy a lot of them on Taobao and Pinduoduo, and the combined cost does not exceed 20,000 US dollars.
On the contrary, the other side's interceptor weapons are more expensive. For example, the Stinger anti-aircraft missile, the cost of a single interception reached $100,000. There are also Patriot missiles, the cost of a single shot has reached 2 million US dollars.
In many comparisons, the air scooter can be described as cheap as cabbage. Use it to carry out drone warfare, and in less than half a year, you can break the other side.
After the Ukrainian side realized that it could not be rowed, it hurriedly adjusted its tactical line. Began to use American-made switchblade drones to counterattack the Russian army.
At the same time, in order to save costs. Ukraine is also following the same example, like the Russian army, through civilian channels to buy drones such as DJI to mount more grenades for charging.
As more and more civilian drones began to flow into the battlefield, DJI simply announced: "Suspend all operations in Russia and Ukraine to ensure that DJI's products are not put into the war."
However, although DJI has proven its innocence, the United States and Western forces still refuse to let it go. As the saying goes, if the talent is not in our camp, it will be killed.
In this way, after Japan announced DJI's dismantling report, the United States began to play a strangulation routine, that is, to pinch the neck of the chip.
The U.S. not only blacklisted DJI, but also banned relevant U.S. companies from cooperating with it. Trying to make DJI obediently obey through a siege.
The crackdown on Huawei that year
In fact, this routine is exactly the same as the sanctions against Huawei back then. As early as 2019, the U.S. government ordered Qualcomm to stop supplying to Huawei.
In 2020, semiconductor companies such as Intel, AMD, and TSMC will also cut their business with Huawei. At the same time, major technology companies in Silicon Valley have also stopped their cloud services for Huawei.
In 2021, the sanctions were even more severe. Many U.S. companies have stopped supplying batteries, resistors, capacitors, and antennas to Huawei.
After receiving this series of sanctions, Huawei's life in those years can be described as extremely difficult.
You know, in 2018, Huawei's sales exceeded 200 million units. However, by 2023, Huawei will only sell 30 million units. This kind of cliff-like fall, no matter who it is put on, is a life and death situation.
Huawei's way to break the game
In the face of this situation, how did Huawei break the situation? There is no way, but like the Battle of Shangganling back then, gnaw hard bones and fight tough battles.
In order to prevent the United States from taking advantage of the weakness of chips, Huawei has invested heavily in talents to upgrade HiSilicon to a first-level department, making it an equal to the cloud computing department.
At the same time, Huawei does not set performance indicators or profit points for HiSilicon. Just let it concentrate on climbing and gnaw down the hard bones.
Finally, after working hard day after day, the HiSilicon Kirin series chips were finally born!
The latest Kirin 9000S chip, after dismantling and analysis by all parties, determined that its process level is close to 7nm. And this also means that the breakthrough of domestic chips from 0 to 1 has been officially completed.
From Huawei to DJI
From Huawei's past, we can also see the future of DJI.
In the face of U.S. sanctions, DJI naturally can't sit still. For example, DJI began to cooperate with many domestic chip manufacturers to transfer chip supply sources from abroad to China.
You must know that the 28nm low-end chips used in DJI drones have now been mass-produced by the mainland. Although the production capacity is a bit unable to keep up with consumption, it is only a matter of time before it is done on a large scale.
In addition, DJI, like Huawei, has set up a subsidiary to specialize in chips. Strive to achieve a breakthrough in the UAV chip from 0 to 1 in the shortest possible time.
If this subsidiary can reach the same level as HiSilicon in the future, then DJI's breakthrough road will be half the battle.
"China Chip" has a promising future
All in all, whether it is Huawei or DJI, the road to rise in the future will definitely be unstoppable. After all, the fact that domestic chips are getting stronger and stronger is beyond doubt.
For example, AMEC has already completed thin film deposition MOCVD equipment and etching equipment, and has supplied stable supplies to YMTC and SMIC.
At the end of 2023, Shanghai Microelectronics also delivered the first domestic SSA/800-10W lithography machine, killing all sides in the field of 28nm chips.
There is also EDA software that has been blocked by foreign countries, which has also been conquered by Huada Jiutian. Today, Empyrean's market share in the DEA field has exceeded 10%.
From the above achievements, it can also be seen that the mainland has made hard efforts in the field of chip semiconductors, and at the same time, it has also gained a lot.
When domestic chip companies have risen, it will be difficult for others to get stuck in our necks. After all, I have what you have, and I have what you don't have. When all the artifacts in the world are in my hands, it will be your fault to provoke me again.
Information sources:
Professor Guan Quan [DJI drones were disassembled, and 80% of chips rely on imports? Foreign media: The second Huawei will be present]
Sina Finance [Full ban, hurting people, the United States has hit DJI with a heavy blow]
Blue Blood Research [Timeline of U.S. sanctions on Huawei: from "don't let Huawei sell in" to "don't let Huawei make it"]
#头条首发大赛#