China Is Still Searching for a Chipmaking Advance That Changes the Game
The country’s attempts to steer its semiconductor industry into relevance are languishing. Vice Premier Liu He is betting on third-generation chips with faster processing speeds.
Employees on a silicon wafer production line at a workshop of Jiejie Semiconductor Co. in Nantong, China.
Photo illustration: 731; Photo: Getty ImagesChina’s aspiration to become a true technological rival to the U.S. faces a foundational challenge: The country doesn’t control the semiconductors that are the building blocks for everything from smartphones to automated cars. In 2020 the Chinese economy spent $350 billion buying chips based largely on Western technology—more than it spent on oil.
For decades the government in Beijing has tried, and mostly failed, to create a national operation for designing and manufacturing cutting-edge chips on its own. The country does have a local chip industry, but the most advanced products remain the domain of such companies as Intel, Samsung, and TSMC.