Chinese semiconductor industry

ansy1968 said:

Hi WTAM,

Can you kindly explain the difference between what Mr Jiangs Chiplet tech can bring (unknown) and Mr Liang current R&D effort (mainstream)? I'm no tech expert, but from a layman point of view Mr Jiang Chiplet solution is a way to solve the current problem of an EUVL machine.? It may undone the effort of Mr Liang research in both 5nm and 3nm (which need an EUVL)? sorry for being nuisance.

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It appears that Mr Jiang has good knowledge of Chiplet technology. He may have done research with the CAS on new technologies like Chiplets and 3D Stacking.

Basically the cost of designing and producing 3nm/5nm ICs are getting very expensive amd complex.
Using Chiplets will basically lower the cost of production. The Chiplets will be produced at higher nodes. So mainly a cost saving measure and also improving the performance of the Chip. Also reduce development times. Chiplets have a better yield rate.

SMIC will still need to pursue advanced nodes and get a EUV Lithograph. However using Chiplets will buy it time while Chinese Semiconductor production technology catches up. They can make more use of the DUVL as the Chiplets can be produced at higher nodes.

TSMC is incorporating Chiplet Technology in its 3nm ICs to lower cost and reduce complexity.

This is a explanation of Chiplets

Annihilation98 said:

I think China really make a big mistake... Instead making a chip, they made useless 5g and AI until they forget to make a chip. This is a big mistake. Without proper chip, all 5g and AI will become useless..Chip is a brain, without it nothing can work not just phone but drone, satellite,AI, car and such.. Now, USA has the power and reason to block all chip and other semiconductor equipment to China.. If Trump really want to show truest president power, what can stop trump to impose and block all chip to china.. Xiaomi , BBK electronic will turn to dust soon and become irrelevant.. China government need to start pouring hundred billion to semiconductor industry and start making euv now..Not focus on Moon landing bullshit!!!!

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Hindsight's 20/20. China should have begun its current drive for EUVL 5 years ago but nobody's perfect and at least China had the mind to maintain a position where it can make a very credible scramble, which is pretty much impossible for every other nation put into China's shoes. You're not suggesting to put all of China's scientists in every field on EUV, right? Cus that's not going to work for reasons I shouldn't have to explain. China can do many things at the same time with all its different types of scientists and the moon landing didn't cost EUV development a single minute's delay. Even with China making strides in every other field of technology, Chinese advanced lithography research could not be progressing any faster than it is now.

The blacklisting of these Chinese companies are strategically timed to after stock offerings.

Chinese investors put in nearly $8 billion in SMIC on the STAR market. Bytedance had to delay IPO plans.

The US wants send the message that investing in tech Chinese companies will result in losses, not because Chinese tech is interior, but simply for being Chinese.

Just like how you ain’t getting into Harvard, not because your SAT’s weren’t high enough, but because you’re Asian.

Hope we all come out stronger after all of this.

China should invest in broad R&D capabilities, rather than just bottleneck technology. EUV is great, but remember EUV is also a leapfrog technology that took 20 years to come intro fruition. 20 years of working on an untested, unproven technology whereas DUV was becoming better all the time. It would have been easy to give up, as Nikon did. ASML succeeded not because ASML is such a great company, but because the West put together a broad ecosystem of many companies and allowed ASML to become the system integrator.

There are leapfrog technologies out there today as well. China should be looking for them. Further it's not just about EUV but about overall R&D investment, basic research and applied research investment. Especially materials science, which has applications across many different fields. What China is going up against is not just the US but the entire Western alliance, so you cannot just compare China's R&D with US R&D, but against the combined R&D of the US, EU, Japan, Korea and Oceania.

How badly will DJI be impacted by the sanctions? Unlike Huawei, I can't imagine that DJI made contingency plans for this.

cbl21 said:

How badly will DJI be impacted by the sanctions? Unlike Huawei, I can't imagine that DJI made contingency plans for this.

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No more CPUs for the drones

No more google and apple app stores



Again we have to see what happens during Biden. Then China will have to make a decision on how to move forward. How aggressively.

localizer said:

No more CPUs for the drones

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That's a struggle unless DJI can or is already coordinating locally-sourced alternatives. I think they shouldn't struggle with this too much tho, China can already produce CPUs, so I don't really see the problem here? Drones don't need say 7nm technology for semiconductors, do they?

No more google and apple app stores

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I don't think this is that bad. People who want drones will buy drones. What's the point of an app store?

cbl21 said:

That's a struggle unless DJI can or is already coordinating locally-sourced alternatives. I think they shouldn't struggle with this too much tho, Chin can already produce CPUs, so I don't really see the problem here? Drones don't need say 7nm technology for semiconductors, do they?


I don't think this is that bad. People who want drones will buy drones. What's the point of an app store?

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Most semiconductor technologies have US tech. SMIC got sanctioned so we don’t know if they can make chips for DJI.

The DJI phantom drone for example, uses Intel’s Myriad line of chips.


App stores are for convenience and updates.

localizer said:

Most semiconductor technologies have US tech. SMIC got sanctioned so we don’t know if they can make chips for DJI.

The DJI Phantom drone for example, uses Intel’s Myriad line of chips.


App stores are for convenience and updates.

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But do you think it's possible for DJI to indigenize those components? I thought China was already capable of producing top-notch CPUs, just not the most cutting-edge chips. Besides, Intel's level is comparable to SMIC no? SMIC being sanctioned alongside DJI just defeats the purpose of discouraging SMIC from supplying DJI, so they might just go ahead and supply DJI anyways.

cbl21 said:

But do you think it's possible for DJI to indigenize those components? I thought China was already capable of producing top-notch CPUs, just not the most cutting-edge chips. Besides, Intel's level is comparable to SMIC no? SMIC being sanctioned alongside DJI just defeats the purpose of discouraging SMIC from supplying DJI, so they might just go ahead and supply DJI anyways.

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But SMIC needs US equipment. They can’t maintain their US made equipment at this rate.


I can see why Liang felt disrespected, probably people blamed him for getting SMIC into such a vulnerable position.