Sources: the White House is considering blacklisting some Huawei-linked Chinese chip companies, after the Mate 60 Pro from August 2023 used an advanced 7nm chip
- Huawei last year revealed an advanced 7-nm chip in a new phone — Raimondo has vowed ‘strongest’ action to protect US security
Context & Ripple Effects
The Mate 60 Pro’s China-made 7nm processor turned a handset launch into a test of whether US chip restrictions were containing Huawei and its supply chain. A subsequent Commerce Department probe into the purported 7nm chip established the policy response now moving toward possible entity designations.
The reported deliberations follow accounts that SMIC used US-made manufacturing equipment for Huawei’s advanced chip and that Washington was separately weighing measures against CXMT and other Chinese companies. The focus is therefore widening from the finished phone to the firms that enable domestic chip production.
First-order effects
- If adopted, blacklisting would restrict the named Huawei-linked companies’ access to US goods and technology, increasing compliance and licensing burdens for their suppliers.
- Huawei-linked chip partners would face more uncertainty in sourcing tools and components after the Mate 60 Pro demonstrated an advanced domestic chip capability.
Second-order effects
- US semiconductor-equipment vendors would need to reassess customers and end-use exposure across the Huawei-linked supply chain, not just direct sales to Huawei or SMIC.
- Chinese chip firms and their customers would have a stronger incentive to qualify non-US inputs and domestic alternatives, while Washington may face pressure to extend controls where dependencies persist.
Third-order effects
- The episode points to export controls evolving from restrictions on individual flagship firms toward enforcement across the manufacturing ecosystem that supports indigenous Chinese chip capacity.
- Whether broader designations materially slow that capacity will depend on the remaining availability of foreign tooling and the pace at which Chinese suppliers can substitute it; the Mate 60 Pro suggests neither outcome is automatic.
The trend: US-China technology policy is shifting toward supply-chain-level controls as advanced Chinese chips expose the limits of targeting a single company or product.