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TSMC chip discovered in Huawei product despite embargo

The Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer TSMC has informed the US authorities about an attempt to circumvent the embargo on computer chips. The complaint was triggered by the discovery of a TSMC semiconductor in a device from the Chinese company Huawei, two insiders said on Tuesday.

It had emerged during an investigation of a Huawei product by the research company TechInsights. TechInsights had informed TSMC about this, whereupon TSMC contacted the US authorities a few weeks ago. The Taiwanese company confirmed the case and emphasized that it had not supplied Huawei since mid-September 2020 due to US export restrictions.

According to the company, it is not aware of any investigations against TSMC. The Department of Commerce stated that it was aware of reports of possible violations of US export controls. The authority did not provide any information on possible investigations. TechInsights did not wish to comment on this issue.

The Financial Times and The Information initially reported on US investigations into Huawei and TSMC. According to the Financial Times, a customer is said to have placed an order with TSMC for computer chips similar to Huawei's Ascend 910B AI processors.

In order to slow down the technological and military rise of the People's Republic, the USA is restricting the export of high technology to the country. The embargo includes, among other things, modern semiconductor components that are necessary for the training and operation of artificial intelligence.