TSMC's visit to the United States is frustrated, Intel is under pressure to promote "China 2.0" strategy | China | Strategy
The South China Morning Post noted that despite increasing pressure from Washington on semiconductor companies to reduce transactions with China, American chip giants cannot abandon the Chinese market, and Intel is pushing for the "China 2.0" strategy.
Recently, Intel's Greater Bay Area Technology Innovation Center opened in Nanshan District, Shenzhen, and announced on site the first batch of six settled enterprises. This technology innovation center will become a key link in Intel's "China 2.0" strategy. Intel China Chairman Wang Rui emphasized that the core of Intel's China strategy is to root in China, serve China, and promote common development.
Intel Great Bay Area Science and Technology Innovation Center will focus on artificial intelligence, chip application development, edge computing, digital development and other fields, gather ecological resources and partners in the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain, jointly promote the landing of application innovation, and build a future oriented innovation ecology and new industrial clusters in the Great Bay Area.
At present, Intel China's R&D and innovation ecosystem layout mainly includes: Intel China Research Institute in Beijing, Intel Asia Pacific R&D Center in Shanghai, Intel FPGA China Innovation Center in Chongqing, and Intel Greater Bay Area Technology Innovation Center in Shenzhen.
Intel CEO visits China twice within 3 months
The South China Morning Post reported that Intel is one of several US technology giants attempting to maintain its business in the world's second largest economy, as US China relations deteriorate and Washington continues to escalate chip export restrictions. Intel CEO Pat Gersinger ended his low-key visit to China in July, marking his second visit in three months.
The three major chip giants in the United States advise Washington not to upgrade its export restrictions to China
According to Bloomberg, on July 17th, the CEOs of the three major chip giants in the United States - Intel's Pat Gelsinger, NVIDIA's Huang Renxun, and Qualcomm's Cristiano Amon - stated during talks with officials from the Biden administration that the US government should study the impact of tightening export restrictions on China. Three CEOs have warned that implementing relevant export control measures may harm the United States' leadership position in the industry.
Expert: Intel is unwilling to abandon the Chinese market due to long-term strategic considerations
TSMC warns that the overall trend in the semiconductor industry is weaker than expected
In fact, the background of Intel's strengthened technological cooperation with China is the current downturn in the semiconductor industry. TSMC warned at the Q2 performance meeting that the overall trend in the semiconductor industry is weaker than expected. It is worth mentioning that TSMC's ambition to expand production capacity in the United States has been repeatedly thwarted.
TSMC's new plant in Arizona stands in stark contrast to the surrounding wilderness
TSMC delays production of 4-nanometer chips at its Meixin plant by one year
At present, TSMC's wafer plant in Arizona is still under construction. The first and second phases of the plant are only separated by a road, with the first phase producing 4-nanometer chips and the second phase producing 3-nanometer chips. However, due to a shortage of skilled professionals in installing semiconductor equipment, the production of 4 nanometers will be delayed by one year and is expected to start in 2025.
But this has also sparked dissatisfaction from the US side. Arizona union leaders in the United States have directly criticized TSMC for using this as an excuse to introduce "lower paying foreign workers.".
Lack of personnel, soaring investment, and difficulty in obtaining subsidies, TSMC has repeatedly suffered setbacks
TSMC has promised that the number of personnel dispatched from Taiwan to Arizona has not been determined yet, but the quantity is limited and will not affect recruitment work in the United States. A recent report released by the Semiconductor Industry Association of America indicates that by 2030, chip manufacturers in the United States will add about 115000 jobs, but there will be 67000 job vacancies, which means that about 58% of the expected new jobs in the industry may still be vacant.
In addition to the shortage of people, investment in TSMC's new plant has skyrocketed, reaching an additional $40 billion. However, TSMC has only received about one-third of the sky high subsidies promised by the United States.
