In 2024, the global chip market is undergoing a silent transformation.
The once unassailable hegemon now feels the chill from the East.
Chinese chips, an industry once "choked", are catching up at an astonishing speed and beginning to show strong competitiveness on the international stage.
In 2020, the trade friction between China and the US continued to escalate, with the technology sector becoming the main battlefield for both sides.
At that time, China's chip industry was highly dependent on foreign technology, especially in the field of high-end chip manufacturing, which was almost entirely monopolized by countries and regions such as Europe, America, Japan, and South Korea.
To curb the rise of Chinese technology, the United States began to impose technological blockades and export restrictions on China, with the semiconductor industry being the first to be affected, thus beginning a siege on "China's core".
However, what the United States did not expect was that these suppressions did not defeat China's chip industry, but instead acted like a catalyst, stimulating the fighting spirit and potential of Chinese chip enterprises.
According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to May 2024, China's integrated circuit production reached 170.28 billion units, a year-on-year increase of 32.7%, equivalent to an average of 11.35 billion chips produced per day.
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In May, China's integrated circuit production reached 35.45 billion units, a year-on-year increase of 17.3%.
Moreover, China's chip exports also achieved counter-trend growth.
Behind this series of numbers is the determination and strength of China's chip industry to strive for success in adversity.
The industry that was once "choked" is now achieving "overtaking on the bend" at an astonishing speed and beginning to occupy an increasingly important position in the global semiconductor market.
For a long time, China's semiconductor industry started late, with insufficient core technology accumulation, and was highly dependent on foreign technology and equipment at the beginning of its development.
This dependency has to some extent restricted the development speed of China's chip industry and has also allowed developed countries such as Europe and America to see a breakthrough in curbing the rise of Chinese technology.
However, with the continuous improvement of China's comprehensive national strength and the rapid development in emerging technology fields such as 5G and artificial intelligence, the huge potential of China's chip industry has gradually emerged, which has aroused the vigilance of the United States and other Western countries.
In order to maintain its hegemonic position in the field of technology, the United States has taken a series of restrictive measures against China, trying to hinder the development of China's chip industry by "choking".
The main restrictive measures of the United States are concentrated on prohibiting American chip companies from exporting high-end chips and key materials to China on the grounds of "national security", such as high-performance computing chips used in fields such as artificial intelligence and supercomputers, as well as materials such as photoresist and silicon wafers used for chip manufacturing.
At the same time, it has pressured the Dutch ASML to restrict the export of photolithography machines, after all, ASML is the only company in the world that can produce EUV lithography machines, and EUV lithography machines are key equipment for manufacturing chips with processes of 7nm and below.
The U.S. government has been constantly pressuring the Netherlands to stop exporting EUV lithography machines to China in an attempt to restrict China's high-end chip manufacturing capabilities.
In addition, the United States has also actively sought to build a comprehensive technological blockade against China's semiconductor industry with countries such as Japan, South Korea, and the Netherlands.
These countries also have key technologies and materials in certain aspects of chip manufacturing, such as semiconductor materials from Japan, lithography equipment from the Netherlands, and memory chips from South Korea.
However, although the United States' suppression of China's chip industry is like "hitting cotton", causing a certain impact in the short term, it has stimulated the fighting spirit and potential of Chinese chip enterprises in the long run, accelerating the pace of independent innovation in China's semiconductor industry.
Faced with the United States' relentless pressure, China has not chosen to sit idly by, but has instead actively engaged in an unprecedented technological "breakthrough battle".
The establishment of the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund focuses on supporting the development of enterprises in the fields of chip design, manufacturing, packaging and testing.
Under the guidance and support of national policies, Chinese chip enterprises have also shown strong resilience and innovation, achieving a series of eye-catching breakthroughs: and in emerging markets such as new energy vehicles, creating differentiated advantages and exploring new development space.
However, we must admit that the rise of China's "core" is not something that can be achieved overnight, but the result of long-term accumulation.
China has the world's largest semiconductor market, and the huge market demand provides a broad space for the development of China's chip industry; the attention and support of relevant departments also provide strong policy guarantees for enterprises.
However, although China's chip industry has made significant progress, we must also clearly recognize that there is still a certain gap compared with the world's advanced level.
In the field of advanced process chips with processes of 7nm and below, we still have a certain gap with international giants such as Samsung.
At the same time, the shortage of core technical talents is still large.
It cannot be ignored that the chip industry is a talent-intensive industry, and the rapid development of China's chip industry requires a huge demand for high-end talents, and talent shortage has become one of the bottlenecks restricting industrial development.
In this regard, facing the opportunities and challenges of the future, China's chip industry needs to continue to maintain a clear mind, adhere to independent innovation, and continuously improve core competitiveness.
We must strengthen international cooperation and jointly maintain the stability and development of the global semiconductor industry chain.
We must actively participate in international division of labor and cooperation, introduce advanced foreign technology and experience, and jointly promote the healthy and stable development of the global semiconductor industry chain.
The rise of China's chips is destined to be full of thorns and challenges, but we have reason to believe that as long as we adhere to the path of independent innovation, China's chip industry will be able to continue to take off and ultimately achieve the great goal of "China's core", and make greater contributions to the development of the global semiconductor industry!
150 days, 170.3 billion chips, this number is a microcosm of the development achievements of China's chip industry, and is also a testament to the continuous improvement of China's scientific and technological strength.
However, as we have seen, China's chip industry has gone through a difficult and tortuous development process.
However, there is also reason to believe that with the support of national policies, the efforts of enterprises, and the joint struggle of all "core" forces, China's chip industry will be able to overcome challenges, seize opportunities, achieve the leap from "follower" to "leader", and contribute "Chinese strength" to the progress of global technology.
China's core, the future can be expected!