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By Karen Freifeld and Fanny Potkin
(Reuters) -Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Firm suspended shipments to China-based chip designer Sophgo after a chip it made was discovered on a Huawei AI processor, in keeping with two individuals acquainted with the matter.
Sophgo had ordered chips from TSMC that matched the one discovered on Huawei’s Ascend 910B, the individuals mentioned. Huawei is restricted from shopping for the expertise to guard U.S. nationwide safety. Reuters couldn’t decide how the chip ended up on the Huawei product.
Sophgo mentioned in an announcement on its web site on Sunday that it was in compliance with all legal guidelines and had by no means engaged in any enterprise relationship with Huawei. Sophgo, which is affiliated with cryptocurrency mining gear firm Bitmain, mentioned it had offered an in depth investigation report back to TSMC to show that it was not associated to Huawei.
TSMC declined to remark. Huawei didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark. The U.S. Division of Commerce mentioned it was conscious of reviews of potential violations of U.S. export controls nevertheless it couldn’t touch upon whether or not any investigation was ongoing.
Tech analysis agency TechInsights found the TSMC chip on Huawei’s Ascend 910B when it took aside the multi-chip processor, a distinct supply advised Reuters on Tuesday. Alerted to the discovering, about two weeks in the past TSMC notified the U.S., the supply mentioned.
About the identical time, TSMC additionally halted shipments to a shopper, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing a Taiwan official who mentioned the suspension got here after the corporate found a chip it equipped to the shopper ended up in a Huawei product.
TSMC alerted Taiwan and U.S. authorities, and started an in depth investigation, the official mentioned. However the official didn’t identify the shopper, which the most recent sources recognized as Sophgo. The Info tech information outlet additionally reported the identify on Saturday.
TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, mentioned earlier this week it had not equipped Huawei since mid-September 2020, and that it “proactively communicated” with the Commerce Division concerning the matter.
“We’re not conscious of TSMC being the topic of any investigation at the moment,” the corporate assertion mentioned.
Shenzhen-based Huawei mentioned in an announcement on Tuesday it has not produced any chips through TSMC after the U.S. imposed new export guidelines on the corporate in 2020.
In 2020, the U.S. expanded its authority to cease shipments of foreign-produced gadgets to Huawei which can be the direct product of U.S. expertise or software program, together with TSMC’s chips.
Earlier than then, TSMC equipped chips for Huawei’s Ascend sequence, sources advised Reuters earlier this yr. Its Ascend 910B, launched in 2022, is considered as probably the most superior AI chip out there from a Chinese language firm.
In August, the Analysis Institute for Democracy, Society and Emergency Expertise (DSET) in Taiwan reported that Bitmain, which it described as a number one Chinese language built-in circuit design enterprise and provider of cryptocurrency mining machines, was “aiming to problem the AI chip market dominance of Nvidia (NASDAQ:) and AMD (NASDAQ:).”
The DSET report described Sophgo as a Bitmain affiliate.
Sophgo was co-founded by Micree Zhan, who additionally co-founded Bitmain, in keeping with a company registration database.
The corporate additionally communicated with the U.S. Federal Communications Fee in 2023 utilizing a Bitmain e-mail tackle and the identify Xiamen Sophgo Applied sciences Ltd.
In 2021, prosecutors raided Bitmain’s operations in Taiwan and accused two Bitmain associates of illegally recruiting Taiwanese semiconductor engineers and illegally conducting analysis and growth actions, in keeping with an announcement by the New Taipei prosecutors workplace.
4 Taiwanese defendants pleaded responsible and got fines, in keeping with the assertion.
Sophgo’s web site says it has analysis and growth facilities in additional than 10 cities in China and different nations.
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