The USA intends to blacklist a Chinese company whose chip, manufactured by TSMC, was unlawfully integrated into a Huawei AI processor. Reuters reports that the Biden administration intends to place Chinese firm Sophgo on a blacklist.
Sophgo is an affiliate of Bitmain, the biggest Bitcoin mining chip and machine firm in the world. The move comes as the US has been adding many Chinese firms on the blacklist, especially technology related firms.
Why is Sophgo Being Charged?
As per Reuters, when a chip discovered on Huawei’s Ascend 910B multi-chip system matched one that the Chinese company Sophgo had ordered from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, it garnered notice.
Sophgo is the most recent Chinese business that the United States plans to penalize for aiding Huawei. The U.S. Commerce Department’s prohibited trade list was expanded this month to include other businesses suspected of being a part of Huawei’s shadow network.
According to Reuters Sophgo, a subsidiary of Bitmain, a provider of Bitcoin mining equipment, is currently being added to the list, also referred to as the Entity List.
Also Read: Bitmain’s Metalpha Invests In Prosper Protocol Amid BTC Mining & Derivatives Market Expansion
What is The Entity List?
Businesses that engage in actions that conflict with U.S. foreign policy and national security interests are added to the Entity list. Then, exporters are prohibited from sending technology and goods to them without a license, which is probably going to be refused.
In 2019, China’s Huawei, a technological company and manufacturer of telecom equipment, was added to the list. Shipping chips, including those created abroad, to the business without a license has been illegal since 2020.
US Keeps Strict Watch on Chinese Firms For Export Controls
The list of Chinese technology companies that are subject to export controls has been extended previously by the US Commerce Department to include many that produce software, tools, and equipment used in the production of computer chips.
Nearly all of the 140 businesses that were recently added to the so-called “entity list” have their headquarters in China. However, there are some Chinese-owned companies in Singapore, South Korea, and Japan.
Washington has been progressively increasing the number of businesses impacted by these export restrictions, as outgoing President Joe Biden’s administration has promoted a growth in semiconductor manufacture and investment in the United States.
The United States has been accused by China of seeking “technology hegemony,” as Washington increases pressure on Huawei and other Chinese producers of cutting-edge technology by preventing access to American suppliers.
It specifically objects to what it refers to as “long-arm jurisdiction” actions, such as the US determination to impose export controls on chips-making equipment manufacturers in Taiwan, Singapore, and South Korea if they employ any US technology that could be supplied to China.