Uncle Sam is this keen to keep US CHIPS funds out of China

The Biden Administration on Friday said it had finalized guardrails to ensure payouts from the $50 billion CHIPS Act don't flow into the hands of the Chinese or into any other country or company of concern. That CHIPS Act money comes from the American taxpayer, and it is supposed to be allocated to corporations so they can …

[CheesyTheClown]

Wow, designed to backfire

The Chinese have managed to produce 7nm semiconductors without EUV. This is a task Intel spent billions on and failed. They will continue to innovate and advance their semiconductor production. They will continue to shrink their processes without outside technology.

Of course, their advancements mean that they will produce chips for a LOT less money than other companies.

By adding clauses blocking collaboration between China and the U.S., the U.S. will be unable to compete.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Wow, designed to backfire

You don't need EUV for 7.

[DS999]

Re: Wow, designed to backfire

TSMC made 7nm chips without EUV too - they hired a lot of TSMC engineers away by dangling salaries 2-3x higher than they were making so they purchased that expertise. They are also using improved DUV machines they purchased from ASML (which can sell them to China until the end of this year) vs what TSMC had at the time, so they could conceivably manage to reach 5nm using them.

The method they are using is costly though as it involves sending wafers through litho/etch cycle 2, 4 perhaps even as much as 6 times for each critical layer.

[PhilipN]

"keep tabs on subsidy recipients"

Right - 'cos we all know how successful Uncle Sam was in preventing massive amounts of billions of dollars disappearing into black holes in Iraq and Afghanistan. Commerce doesn't need to worry - China will be at the back of the queue.

[whoseyourdaddy]

Re: "keep tabs on subsidy recipients"

The problem: encouraging investment when the profit margin will be less.

Do we build a fab or processing facility in a red state or do we build it in Viet Nam or India?

It's no secret the PPP act, a republican-written program, gave US loans that were well-documented pandemic-related business loans to several sitting members of the US congress.

I believe most people/publicly traded companies are complaining the CHIPS act can't be use to construct new facilities in China.

[TheInstigator]

Does this mean Intel & GF should be put on China's entity list?

Given they develop stuff for the American Military?

[frankrider]

Cautiously Optimistic

I think the CHIPS Act is one of the few, scratch that, the only initiative lead by the administration that I like. Congress did their job in passing it, now it's up to Biden to execute it (that's his job as head of the executive branch) -- and that's where things get could get a little hairy.

[Ideasource]

Re: Cautiously Optimistic

True true.

law operates as a description of a dream for the future coupled with threat of targeted vengeance against those who would be indifferent or actively against.

The execution and results of that execution is the reality.