BRIEF:U.S. asks TSMC to halt AI chip shipments to China – report

The U.S. Department of Commerce sent a letter to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) (2330.TW; TSM.US) requesting it to stop supplying sub-7nm chips to customers in Mainland China starting from this Monday, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. Such chips are among the world’s most cutting-edge, used in AI accelerators and graphics processing units (GPUs).

According to the sources, TSMC, after receiving the letter from the U.S., notified affected customers that shipments will be halted from Monday. The U.S. Commerce Department declined to comment on the matter. A TSMC spokesperson also declined to comment, stating only that TSMC is a law-abiding company committed to complying with all applicable rules and regulations in the markets where it operates, including relevant export controls.

Several weeks ago, TSMC informed the Commerce Department that it discovered one of its chips was being used in Huawei’s AI processors. TSMC subsequently suspended shipments to the chip design company involved, Sophgo.

TSMC holds 92% of the global market for advanced process chips. The company recently reported earning T$314.2 billion ($9.74 billion) in October, up 24.8% month-over-month and 29.2% year-over-year, marking a new record. TSMC’s stock fell by 0.46% to T$1,085 on Monday.

By Lee Shih Ta

To subscribe to Bamboo Works weekly free newsletter, click  here