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Chinese chip maker SMIC ‘potentially’ broke US law to make Huawei’s 7-nm smartphone processor, lawmaker says

  • A senior US official reiterated that SMIC’s 7-nm semiconductor process is ‘low-yield’, but said he cannot comment on potential investigations
  • The China-made chip in Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro was considered a huge win for the sanctioned tech giant and resulted in a domestic sales rally

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A Kirin 9000s chip fabricated in China by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), taken from a Huawei Technologies Mate 60 Pro smartphone, on September 3, 2023. Photo: Bloomberg
Bloomberg
Chinese chip maker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) “potentially” broke American law if it manufactured a processor for sanctioned telecoms giant Huawei Technologies, a senior US official said.

Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Alan Estevez was questioned about the 7-nanometre processor that SMIC made for Huawei during testimony before lawmakers Thursday. When asked by Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul whether SMIC violated US controls, Estevez said “potentially, yes”.

“We’ll assume that it was SMIC,” Estevez said. “I can’t talk about any investigations that may or may not be going, but we certainly share those concerns, and that’s certainly the reporting.”

Estevez described SMIC’s manufacturing process as “low-yield”, repeating past comments from Commerce officials questioning China’s ability to produce advanced chips at scale and at a consistent performance threshold.

Estevez heads the agency’s Bureau of Industry and Security, which is responsible for chip export controls and sanctions that the Biden administration hopes will kneecap China’s semiconductor ambitions. President Joe Biden has introduced sweeping restrictions on the ability of Chinese companies to purchase advanced chips and chipmaking gear from American firms, and persuaded key allies including the Netherlands and Japan to introduce their own curbs.

Despite those efforts, Shenzen-based Huawei managed to debut an advanced 7-nm chip in a smartphone that went on sale while Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo was visiting China in August. The chip in Huawei’s Mate 60 device was manufactured by SMIC but relied heavily on technology from Dutch equipment giant ASML Holding NV and US gear makers including Lam Research and Applied Materials.

That equipment was exported to China before US and Dutch curbs limiting such transactions went into effect, Bloomberg News has reported.

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