TSMC cuts ties with Singapore firm over chip found in Huawei processor: sources

[soAsian]

You can Google the news, and many outlets point to SCMP as their source.

Aren’t we just playing whack-a-mole? I understand the intent is to slow down China because, once the Chinese master the process, they can mass-produce and sell at cost to gain market share with government backing. However, blocking China from anything and everything related to semiconductors doesn’t seem to be working either.

The Chinese can buy from the black market, create bogus companies, or pay other companies in other countries to purchase for them. Maybe the U.S. should just keep selling chips and semiconductor equipment to China.

Exclusive | TSMC cuts ties with Singapore firm over Huawei processor: sources

The world’s largest chip foundry ended its relationship with a Singapore-based firm after a client review.

web.archive.org

 

[Daniel Nenni]

You can Google the news, and many outlets point to SCMP as their source.

Aren’t we just playing whack-a-mole? I understand the intent is to slow down China because, once the Chinese master the process, they can mass-produce and sell at cost to gain market share with government backing. However, blocking China from anything and everything related to semiconductors doesn’t seem to be working either.

The Chinese can buy from the black market, create bogus companies, or pay other companies in other countries to purchase for them. Maybe the U.S. should just keep selling chips and semiconductor equipment to China.

Exclusive | TSMC cuts ties with Singapore firm over Huawei processor: sources

The world’s largest chip foundry ended its relationship with a Singapore-based firm after a client review.

web.archive.org

I agree, keep selling to China and use the money to innovate and move faster so they never catch up. Same with business in the US. Stop looking in your rearview mirror otherwise you will drive off the road.

North Korea and Russian weapons are filled with semiconductors designed in the US. There is just no stopping it when money can be made by middlemen.

 

[XYang2023]

I agree, keep selling to China and use the money to innovate and move faster so they never catch up. Same with business in the US. Stop looking in your rearview mirror otherwise you will drive off the road.

North Korea and Russian weapons are filled with semiconductors designed in the US. There is just no stopping it when money can be made by middlemen.

I believe China will catch up with and eventually surpass Taiwan, primarily due to its large pool of engineers and its strong work ethic. Additionally, since there is no language barrier between Taiwan and China, it is easy for Taiwanese professionals to work in China.

This trend is also influenced by how the United States operates. For example, the Commerce Department blocked Intel from selling client chips to Huawei, while permitting back-channel sales of Nvidia GPUs to China. Intel’s chips are manufactured in the U.S., whereas Nvidia’s chips are made in Taiwan. How does that benefit U.S. manufacturing?

As a side note, I think Intel should not take the U.S. government too seriously. Instead, it should focus on its own strategy and treat its fabrication assets as a form of insurance in the event of geopolitical conflict.

 

[Daniel Nenni]

I believe China will catch up with and eventually surpass Taiwan, primarily due to its large pool of engineers and its strong work ethic. Additionally, since there is no language barrier between Taiwan and China, it is easy for Taiwanese professionals to work in China.

This trend is also influenced by how the United States operates. For example, the Commerce Department blocked Intel from selling client chips to Huawei, while permitting back-channel sales of Nvidia GPUs to China. Intel’s chips are manufactured in the U.S., whereas Nvidia’s chips are made in Taiwan. How does that benefit U.S. manufacturing?

As a side note, I think Intel should not take the U.S. government too seriously. Instead, it should focus on its own strategy and treat its fabrication assets as a form of insurance in the event of geopolitical conflict.

Not all of Intel's chips are made in the US. Intel has fabs in Ireland and Israel but I get your point.

Admittedly, I have not been to China since the pandemic but corruption was one of the biggest problems in China semiconductor, which of course can be fixed. The other was the culture of replicating versus innovating. One thing I will tell you is that China based EDA is getting better every year. Will it ever catch Synopsys or Cadence? No, but it is 100 times better than 5 years ago. I could be wrong, I am biased since I grew up in Silicon Valley, but I do not think China will catch up. The semiconductor ecosystem moves fast and Taiwan is an important part of it.

 

[XYang2023]

Not all of Intel's chips are made in the US. Intel has fabs in Ireland and Israel but I get your point.

Admittedly, I have not been to China since the pandemic but corruption was one of the biggest problems in China semiconductor, which of course can be fixed. The other was the culture of replicating versus innovating. One thing I will tell you is that China based EDA is getting better every year. Will it ever catch Synopsys or Cadence? No, but it is 100 times better than 5 years ago. I could be wrong, I am biased since I grew up in Silicon Valley, but I do not think China will catch up. The semiconductor ecosystem moves fast and Taiwan is an important part of it.

Obviously there are issues with China. But ultimately, dedication to work really matters.

 

[Daniel Nenni]

Obviously there are issues with China. But ultimately, dedication to work really matters.

You are right about work culture which is what made Taiwan a semiconductor superpower. My experience growing up in Silicon Valley in the 1980s and 1990s is different than today. We worked very hard, 60 hour weeks was not a problem because we all thought we would get rich off stock options. It really was the American dream in play. I remember seeing semiconductor company parking lots full after dark and on weekends for the longest time. Nvidia was one of those by the way. Now after dark the Silicon Valley roads are jam packed with people trying to get home starting at 3pm and you will see nothing on weekends. A different time for sure.

What motivates semiconductor workers in China? The same dream of getting rich?

 

[KevinK]

However, blocking China from anything and everything related to semiconductors doesn’t seem to be working either.

In my books, this behavior is proof that that one part of the sanctions is actually working. SMIC really can't really produce as they claim with good volumes and high yields, so Huawei is forced to continue to lie and cheat. Huawei's potential customers for the Ascend 910Bs are forced to buy gimped NVIDIA chips instead, to try to keep up. I'm not a fan of tariffs and sanctions, but if you had to pick a few sanctions that offer a long term technological advantage in the face of a county with industrial policy that focuses on unmitigated over-investment and over-capacity in targeted sectors, this is probable one of the better use cases.

 

[XYang2023]

You are right about work culture which is what made Taiwan a semiconductor superpower. My experience growing up in Silicon Valley in the 1980s and 1990s is different than today. We worked very hard, 60 hour weeks was not a problem because we all thought we would get rich off stock options. It really was the American dream in play. I remember seeing semiconductor company parking lots full after dark and on weekends for the longest time. Nvidia was one of those by the way. Now after dark the Silicon Valley roads are jam packed with people trying to get home starting at 3pm and you will see nothing on weekends. A different time for sure.

What motivates semiconductor workers in China? The same dream of getting rich?

I believe people generally want to work whenever possible, regardless of pay level (from low to high), to secure a better future—for their families (taking care of children and elderlies), retirement, medical emergencies, and etc.

 

[soAsian]

I believe China will catch up with and eventually surpass Taiwan, primarily due to its large pool of engineers and its strong work ethic.

I'm not sure about that, given the current "lay flat" trend among Chinese youth.

 

[XYang2023]

I'm not sure about that, given the current "lay flat" trend among Chinese youth.

China: number of university graduates 2023 | Statista

In 2023, a record high of around 10.47 million students graduated from undergraduate programs at public colleges and universities in China.

www.statista.com

Taiwan Population (2025) - Worldometer

Population of Taiwan: current, historical, and projected population, growth rate, immigration, median age, total fertility rate (TFR), population density, urbanization, urban population, country's share of world population, and global rank. Data tables, maps, charts, and live population clock

www.worldometers.info

Taiwan: population distribution by broad age group 2023 | Statista

In 2023, the share of the population in Taiwan aged 65 and older accounted for approximately 18.4 percent of the total population.

www.statista.com

 

[Barnsley]

What motivates semiconductor workers in China? The same dream of getting rich?

This is my question doing if for "The Glory of the State" only gets you so far.

Trousering Billions of dollars without producing anything would seem to be the MO.

Also Semicon now have competition from Aviation as an industry for local Govts to invest and meet whatever criteria is set centrally.

With the Chinese made COMAC jets now operating within China many local Govts want a piece of the supply line action

 

[Barnsley]

China: number of university graduates 2023 | Statista

In 2023, a record high of around 10.47 million students graduated from undergraduate programs at public colleges and universities in China.

www.statista.com

Taiwan Population (2025) - Worldometer

Population of Taiwan: current, historical, and projected population, growth rate, immigration, median age, total fertility rate (TFR), population density, urbanization, urban population, country's share of world population, and global rank. Data tables, maps, charts, and live population clock

www.worldometers.info

Taiwan: population distribution by broad age group 2023 | Statista

In 2023, the share of the population in Taiwan aged 65 and older accounted for approximately 18.4 percent of the total population.

www.statista.com

Isnt Youth Unemployment at an all time high?

How is the Govt going to create meaningful jobs , the modern youth is not gonna settle for being paid to do a non-job , of which there are many in China.

India is suffering the same problem , however their Grads have more opportunity to do a runner elsewhere than Chinese Graduates

 

[XYang2023]

I am just pointing out that, the number of graduates per year in China is significantly higher than the number in Taiwan. It could even be comparable to the size of the working population in Taiwan. Even after accounting for the unemployment rate, the number remains substantial.

 

[Jozo035]

EU has around 4.5M university graduates per year. It is just number.

 

[XYang2023]

Human capital costs in China should be as competitive as in Taiwan if not better.

 

[hist78]

On paper China has a lot more scholars, scientists, engineers, and college graduates than any free world countries. In reality, CCP has been killing them and abusing them all the time. We need to understand the political system is one of the biggest reasons that lead to Taiwan's success in semiconductor industry while the much larger mainland China is still dreaming to catch up.

 

[tooLongInEDA]

Not all of Intel's chips are made in the US. Intel has fabs in Ireland and Israel but I get your point.

Admittedly, I have not been to China since the pandemic but corruption was one of the biggest problems in China semiconductor, which of course can be fixed. The other was the culture of replicating versus innovating. One thing I will tell you is that China based EDA is getting better every year. Will it ever catch Synopsys or Cadence? No, but it is 100 times better than 5 years ago. I could be wrong, I am biased since I grew up in Silicon Valley, but I do not think China will catch up. The semiconductor ecosystem moves fast and Taiwan is an important part of it.

In general (I made no comment about China which I haven't visited), corruption is not a quick or easy thing to fix as it's often tied to social and historical norms. And, in general, less corrupt societies and countries are richer and more innovative than more corrupt ones.

 

[hist78]

In general (I made no comment about China which I haven't visited), corruption is not a quick or easy thing to fix as it's often tied to social and historical norms. And, in general, less corrupt societies and countries are richer and more innovative than more corrupt ones.

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely!"

Chinese Communist Party holds the absolute power in mainland China and has controlled the mainland China since 1949. And they have been fighting corruptions ever since. The career and the fate of a Chinese official is linked to whether he/she is on the winning side of the corrupted CCP or on the losing side of the corrupted CCP. There is no third choice.

If a person is naive enough not to corrupt, he/she will not survive in the CCP system or stay alive at all.

 

[XYang2023]

China vs. US natural disaster responses:

Xinhua Commentary: Quake response in Xizang exemplifies China's good governance

Xinhua Commentary: Quake response in Xizang exemplifies China's good governance-

english.news.cn

Taiwan's TV program comparing the two responses to natural disasters(in Chinese though):

 

[soAsian]

China vs. US natural disaster responses:

Xinhua Commentary: Quake response in Xizang exemplifies China's good governance

Xinhua Commentary: Quake response in Xizang exemplifies China's good governance-

english.news.cn

Taiwan's TV program comparing the two responses to natural disasters(in Chinese though):

CTI is well-known for being pro-CCP in Taiwan. Its shows are full of pro-CCP talking heads, parroting China Central Television. Its audience are pro-China old folks. I'm not really sure what you're trying to say here.

Edit: Is your point about DEI? That's what the CCP talking heads are discussing in the clip. Are you parroting the conspiracy theory from MAGA?