Huawei device takes another step in the fight between the two countries. The US and China are facing off in the field of technology.
Huawei Technologies Co. added a new flagship model to its Mate 60 smartphone lineup on Friday. The device will feature satellite messaging and more memory than its predecessor.
But as the Shenzhen-based company moves to become technologically independent of previously imported components, the U.S. has launched an official investigation into high-quality Chinese-made chips found in Huawei’s latest smartphones. The administration’s actions have sparked a debate in Washington about the effectiveness of sanctions in curbing geopolitical competition. Read more about the controversy between the U.S. and China.
Sanctions for Chinese companies
The Commerce Ministry, which has imposed a series of sanctions on Huawei and the Chinese chip industry over the past two years, said it wants more information about the 7-nanometer processor allegedly found in Mate 60 Pro.
The chip is manufactured by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. Like Huawei, the company is from China and is also on the US “blacklist,” meaning it does not have access to American technology. “We are working to obtain more information about the nature and composition of the alleged 7nm chip,” a spokesperson for the US Department of Commerce said.
Huawei’s quiet unveiling of phones that use technology the U.S. has tried to keep out of China’s hands risks thwarting the Biden administration’s latest push for support. The phone went on sale online during Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s visit to China last week, the latest in a series of high-level diplomatic visits to Beijing.
Whether this reflects the failure of US efforts to contain China’s tech industry, led by Raimondo’s division, is now hotly debated. The US says it will give China a military advantage, for example.
Questions have therefore been raised about whether export controls on essential materials, tools and know-how, which are the main mechanism of the United States, should be tightened. Shares of Chinese semiconductor equipment makers rose 20% on news of the US investigation, so it looks like the industry will receive more government support.
This progress has been largely driven by companies involved in lithography equipment, a weak link in China's chip supply chain that the Chinese government is trying to develop.
Mate 60 Pro
The Mate 60 Pro smartphone uses high-end components made in China, in addition to the main processor. This shows the progress of the development of technological resources in China.
The Pro+ adds up to 1 terabyte of storage and 4GB more memory than the Pro+. The Pro model costs an average of 6,999 yuan. Shares of vendor Huawei surged 10% to the daily limit in China after the latest product launched in online stores.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said he would not comment until the US had more information. However, he said there were several ways in which the US was trying to understand exactly what “it’s dealing with”. In addition, Huawei’s new device has sparked a wave of nationalist sentiment on Chinese social media, which has been described as a step forward in the face of US sanctions and another step in the process. trade war.
