2 weeks Ago
Taiwanese chipmaking giant TSMC has indicated that it may not be possible to ensure that its cutting-edge AI chips don’t reach China, according to a Bloomberg report. US export controls require companies like TSMC to monitor shipments and know their customers to prevent China from getting access to the most advanced AI chips. An investigation by Canadian research firm TechInsights in 2024 showed that Chinese tech giant Huawei’s Ascend 910B AI chip contained TSMC chips.
Around the same time, TSMC halted shipments to a client after finding out the semiconductors it made for the customer ended up with Huawei. The challenge for the Taiwanese tech giant is that the semiconductors TSMC customizes for many fabless firms and chip designers often end up being used in gadgets made by third parties, which is perfectly legitimate. The Trump administration is following the Biden administration in attempts to stop China from accessing advanced AI chips.
The US has blacklisted Chinese companies it believes were involved in giving Huawei access to TSMC chips. But TSMC appears to be saying that there is no guarantee that the chips won’t reach China, no matter how careful it is..
