Both Samsung and SK Hynix have ceased selling used chipmaking equipment on the secondary market due to U.S. export controls and sanctions on China and Russia. The equipment has been stored in warehouses since 2022 when the U.S. first imposed restrictions on advanced AI chips and semiconductor tool shipments to China. This move is part of a broader effort by the U.S. to slow China's progress with AI and military technology.
Key takeaways:
- Samsung Electronics is reportedly adopting the chipmaking technology used by its competitor, SK Hynix, after facing production issues with its current non-conductive film (NCF) chipmaking technology.
- Unlike its peers, Samsung has not made deals with Nvidia, the world’s biggest AI chip firm, to supply it with high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips.
- Samsung and SK Hynix, leaders in memory chipmaking, have stopped selling used chipmaking equipment on the secondary market due to U.S. export controls and sanctions on China and Russia.
- The U.S. has imposed restrictions on shipments of advanced AI chips and semiconductor tools to China since 2022, in an effort to slow China’s progress with AI and military technology.