Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has suspended production of advanced AI chips for Chinese companies, according to Financial Times. The Taiwanese semiconductor chipmaker has informed its clients from China that it will stop production of AI chips for them, especially models 7 nanometers and smaller, starting this Monday. If a Chinese company were to order a product that fell into that category, they would have to go through an approval process that would likely involve the US government.
The manufacturer’s new policy could be a direct result of Huawei’s discovery Its chips are used Unknowingly in the AI Accelerator. It was a Canadian research firm called TechInsights that informed the company that it had discovered the presence of TSMC-made products in Huawei’s hardware. This is in violation of a trade embargo the US Commerce Department imposed against Huawei in 2020 that prevents it from acquiring chips made by foreign companies. More recently, it revoked its license that allowed Intel and Qualcomm to make chips for its devices.
TSMC reported TechInsights’ findings to the US Commerce Department, which is now investigating how this happened. The company also denied any working relationship with Huawei sold out The client believed its chips were illegally shipped to Chinese brands. the times’ Sources said that TSMC has decided to completely suspend production of AI chips for Chinese clients, as it wants to show the US government that they are “not acting against US interests.” Its new policy could have a major impact on its Chinese clients’ AI efforts. Baidu, for example, had plans to build hardware for its AI business powered by a series of chips made by TSMC.