China declares US chips unsafe, urges companies to use domestic semiconductors

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China has hit back with sanctions of its own

Computer chip with US and China flag
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  • China has shadow-banned US semiconductors
  • The sanctions hit back against US export controls for chip manufacturing kit
  • China has also restricted exports of rare minerals used in military devices

China has hit back against the latest round of US sanctions by declaring US semiconductors "no longer safe" for use by Chinese organizations.

The US recently issued its third round of sanctions to limit China’s ability to produce semiconductors domestically by restricting companies from selling chip assembly technology to the nation.

China did not offer any evidence or reasoning as to why US semiconductors were unsafe, but it is likely an attempt to steer Chinese markets away from using imported chips from companies such as Nvidia, AMD, and Intel and on to domestic productions.

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China’s warning isn’t a ban on US chips per se, but the Internet Society of China told companies to carefully consider their choice of semiconductor manufacturers, and urged organizations to use China’s growing domestic market of chips “proactively.”

Last year, China added several specific semiconductors produced by Intel, AMD, and other chip manufacturers to a blacklist, forcing companies to shift away from Western technology. Moreover, a group representing China’s cybersecurity professionals claimed that Intel was installing backdoors into CPUs to be used by the NSA for espionage.

Additionally, China has banned the export of gallium, antimony, and germanium to the US due to their use in both military and civilian applications. China accounts for 98% of the world's raw gallium production, 48% of antimony, and 83% of germanium, causing prices to skyrocket and likely forcing the US to seek alternative sources.

As part of the warning against the use of US semiconductors, the China Association of Communication Enterprises has urged Beijing to investigate potential supply chain vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure that use Western-produced semiconductors.

Via Reuters

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Benedict Collins
Benedict Collins
Senior Writer, Security

Benedict is a Senior Security Writer at TechRadar Pro, where he has specialized in covering the intersection of geopolitics, cyber-warfare, and business security.

Benedict provides detailed analysis on state-sponsored threat actors, APT groups, and the protection of critical national infrastructure, with his reporting bridging the gap between technical threat intelligence and B2B security strategy.

Benedict holds an MA (Distinction) in Security, Intelligence, and Diplomacy from the University of Buckingham Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies (BUCSIS), with his specialization providing him with a robust academic framework for deconstructing complex international conflicts and intelligence operations, and the ability to translate intricate security data into actionable insights.