US citizens at Chinese chip firms caught in the middle of tech war after new export restrictions
- Washington’s latest export restrictions prohibit ‘US persons’ from supporting the ‘development or production’ of chips at targeted Chinese firms
- Several C-suite executives at affected companies worked in the US semiconductor industry and gained citizenship before returning to China
New US restrictions on Chinese chips firms could put American executives at targeted companies in a precarious situation since Washington banned “US persons” from supporting their development.
JW Insights, a semiconductor industry research firm in China, said the term “US person” could be “one of the most influential terms” in the latest export controls.
While specifics on implementation remain unclear, the rules could cast a shadow over technology personnel either holding US citizenship or permanent residency at Chinese chip companies, according to Ruan Donghui, an attorney at law firm Dentons.
According to a review of published C-suite profiles by listed Chinese companies – including AmLogic, Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment of China (AMEC), 3Peak, Starpower Semiconductor, ACM Research and Halo Microelectronics – there are dozens of executives in China’s chip industry with US citizenship.