TThe Biden administration is being questioned for allegedly allowing TSMC to supply chips for Huawei products. The current US government has been trying to prevent certain companies from collaborating with Chinese tech giants.
How is the Biden government liable for TSMC making chips for Huawei?
A US lawmaker has openly criticized the Biden administration for careless monitoring of Huawei and TSMC. Interestingly, Mark Warner is a Democratic Senator, which means a member of Biden’s party has raised some doubts about the government’s efficacy.
Warner has accused the government of negligible monitoring of TSMC and Huawei. He reportedly wrote a letter to the government highlighting ‘repeated leadership failures’ in imposing better trade export regulations.
“TSMC’s production of chips for Huawei has serious implications for U.S. national security. I urge you to swiftly take immediate steps to assess and strengthen the efficacy of existing controls.”
The Biden administration is yet to respond to this letter. However, the Commerce Department claimed the US has never been more tough on China.
Biden administration under scrutiny for not doing enough
The US lawmaker is concerned because a chip was reportedly discovered inside a Huawei AI processor. TSMC recently admitted it made the chip.
This is concerning because of U.S. export rules put in place by the U.S. Commerce Department in 2020. As per the rules, foundries utilizing U.S. technology should not ship cutting-edge silicon to Chinese companies, particularly Huawei.
The US Commerce Department has added 400+ Chinese firms to the Entity List with extensive trade rules. Despite these sanctions, several Chinese companies are reportedly receiving advanced chips built using American technology.
Recently, the House China Select Committee accused Chinese companies Pengxinxu, SwaySure Technology, Qingdao Si’En, and “potentially many others” of working in Huawei’s “clandestine network.”
It seems delays in enforcing policies could be one of the reasons how Huawei is circumventing sanctions. Chinese companies have already managed to stockpile advanced equipment, suggests some reports.
US sanctions on China seem to be driving innovation in the country. Huawei’s latest smartphone packs a 7nm chipset. It has been made by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), a Chinese company.
