Tech war: China condemns US Chips and Science act amid headwinds in semiconductor self-sufficiency
- US President Joe Biden has signed the bipartisan Chips and Science Act into law to enhance the country’s competitiveness against China
- The new law reflects Washington’s ‘growing lack of self-confidence’ in the face of China’s rise, said a Global Times editorial
Chinese state media outlets and trade institutions have joined a chorus of government voices lambasting a new US law aimed at boosting semiconductor manufacturing on American soil, seen by Beijing as part of a plot by Washington to undermine China’s role in global supply chains.
Under the legislation, the US would set aside nearly US$53 billion to fund domestic semiconductor production, a major battleground in the US-China tech war. Subsidy recipients are barred from expanding production in China beyond “legacy semiconductors” – defined as chips made with 28-nanometre process technology or older – for 10 years.
The law is designed to lure semiconductor talent and investments into the US, while trying to stop global chip giants – such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and Samsung Electronics – from expanding their capacity in China if they use US funding.
“The future of the chip industry is going to be made in America,” Biden said in a Rose Garden ceremony.
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US Senate passes Chips and Science Act to compete with China’s semiconductor industry