Huawei Chip Shows US Curbs Are Porous, Not Useless
A new smartphone from Huawei Technologies Co. has reignited debate over chip technology and China's ability to skirt US-led curbs. In reality, last week's release of the Mate 60 Pro shows that the success of sanctions is painted in shades of grey, with the true impact yet to come.
High-performance and fast connection speeds indicate that the sleek new device is equipped with 5G wireless capabilities and an advanced system-on-chip processor manufactured by Shanghai-based Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. Testing by Bloomberg News shows the smartphone hitting speeds in excess of 350 megabits per second. That's akin to fifth-generation mobile standards and is on par with Apple Inc. 's iPhones.
The news spurred optimism in China that home-grown technology is catching up to foreign rivals, despite tighter rules on sales of semiconductors and manufacturing equipment to the country. “There is hope that Chinese companies will be able to tide over the US government's sanctions and restrictions on chip supply,” the government-backed China Daily wrote.
Regulations announced by the US Commerce Department in October last year restrict the export of manufacturing tools that can churn out processors at 16 nanometers or below (smaller geometries are more advanced). Allies, including major equipment exporters Japan and the Netherlands, agreed to follow these rules.
Neither Huawei or SMIC have publicized specifications for the chip inside the Mate 60 Pro. Yet the size and performance of the processor means it was almost certainly made by SMIC at 7nm or better, Dylan Patel, founder of semiconductor researcher SemiAnalysis told me this week.
Tests conducted in July last year by Canadian researcher TechInsights on an earlier chip,
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