US Expected to Further Restrict China’s Access to Advanced Chip Tech Next Month

China’s access to advanced semiconductor technology and tools is set to become even more restricted next month.

As Reuters reports(Opens in a new window), the Biden administration is planning a fresh round of restrictions on chips and chip-making tools. According to people familiar with the matter, the Commerce Department will publish a new set of regulations at some point in October.

The new restrictions will impact three US companies in particular: Applied Materials Inc., KLA Corp., and Lam Research Corp. Applied Materials provides equipment, services, and software for semiconductor manufacturing. KLA offers process control and yield management systems for the semiconductor industry, and Lam Research provides wafer fabrication equipment and services for creating the active components of semiconductors.

Once implemented, it’s thought the regulations will stop chip-making equipment from being exported to Chinese factories capable of producing sub-14nm components. The only way around these restrictions is to secure a license from the Commerce Department first. The three companies mentioned above received “is informed” letters earlier this year, which allow for the new restrictions to come into affect very quickly.

It became clear back in July that the US wanted to further restrict China’s access to chip-making tools. And China is already facing up to the challenge of having its access to advanced semiconductor technology cut off. Last week the US told AMD and Nvidia to stop selling advanced chips to China. That was swiftly followed by the CHIPS Act banning firms from building new fabs in China for a decade. Earlier this year the UK government stopped China licensing advanced vision sensor technology, demonstrating that it’s not just the US attempting to restrict access.

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