"However, Intel's FPGA business, which generates most of its programmable solutions group (PSG) revenue, faces a less certain future in China because its Altera chips power Huawei's 5G stations (these are a
in the escalating tech war between the U.S. and China). Intel's statement about "certain" types of chips hints that those chips could still be banned.
Yet Intel can afford to lose those orders since its PSG business generated just 2.5% of its revenue last quarter. Intel doesn't disclose the PSG segment's exact revenue from China, but we know that the chipmaker generated 28% of its total revenue in China last year. As such, Intel's FPGA sales to Huawei likely account for less than 1% of its total revenue.
These new license approvals should allay some concerns about Intel and AMD's future in China, but they also indicate the Trump
administration isn't ready to completely cut Huawei off from American chips. That hesitation mirrors the Chinese to blacklist U.S. tech companies.
Both sides seem hesitant because their technologies and businesses are still too tightly intertwined. Moreover, cutting off Huawei from American chips would force Chinese chipmakers to accelerate the development of their
-- which could harm
over the long run.
