U.S. Congress Presses TSMC Loophole Crackdown
The United States Congress has urged the Trump administration to strengthen customer verification for foundry companies, including TSMC, to prevent the indirect supply of advanced semiconductors to sanctioned Chinese companies such as Huawei. This is a demand to block the loopholes through which Chi
The U.S. Congress is urging the Trump administration to tighten customer verification procedures for foundries like TSMC, in an effort to curb the indirect supply of advanced semiconductors to prohibited Chinese entities such as Huawei. This comes after a January 2022 regulation requiring chip manufacturers to verify whether customers are shell companies or potential conduits for sanctioned firms in nations like China.
Representative John Moolenaar, the Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition, claims this regulation was crucial in averting a repetition of the Sophgo incident, where a TSMC-produced chip found its way into an AI processor sold by Huawei. TSMC, the world's largest foundry, is now facing heightened scrutiny due to apprehensions over its verification methods for Chinese orders.
The demand for tighter regulations is fueled by Congress's growing unease over the administration's more lenient stance toward some semiconductor rules established under the Biden administration. Republican Senator Jim Banks and Representative Bill Huizenga have also called for heightened scrutiny of contract manufacturing firms to prevent Chinese entities from indirectly acquiring advanced AI semiconductors via overseas corporations.
The Trump administration's decision to permit Nvidia's advanced AI chips to enter China has sparked criticism, particularly due to the potential for circumvention tactics. If Congress's call for stricter regulations materializes, it could significantly intensify the screening process for Chinese customers, impacting not just TSMC but global foundries engaged in advanced manufacturing.
Written by urgent.news from BusinessKorea's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
