The Trump administration has blacklisted China’s largest computing chip manufacturer, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SIMC). The move will restrict the company’s access to high-est technology and is a result of its close ties to the Chinese military. SIMC, alongside 60 other Chinese institutions, will be added to a blacklist, according to the Commerce Department. The designation restricts companies from exporting US-made tech without a license.
This means that the SIMC will not be able to effectively acquire the products needed to build chips with 10-nanometer circuits or smaller. These types of chips are considered to be within the industry’s top class of chips and are the most sought after, as well as a major source of revenue for SIMC. The move not only raises pressure significantly on the chipmaker, but it deepens tensions between the US and China.
Read More: U.S. Blacklists China’s Top Chip Maker, Escalating Tech Fight