Huawei Technologies Used Smuggled TSMC Dies for Ascend 910C
Huawei Technologies developed its Ascend 910C AI chip using smuggled TSMC dies and stockpiled memory components to bypass U.S. export restrictions.
The Chinese technology firm Huawei Technologies developed its Ascend 910C AI chip by acquiring nearly three million Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) dies through a shell company called Sophgo. This strategy allowed Huawei Technologies to bypass U.S. export restrictions and begin mass shipment of the processor earlier this year.
To complete the hardware, Huawei Technologies utilized stockpiles of older-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM2E) chips from Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix. Both Samsung and SK Hynix stated they remain compliant with U.S. regulations and have not sold to Huawei Technologies since 2020.
TSMC was fined $1 billion after the leak of the dies was discovered. Despite these efforts to achieve technological sovereignty, reports indicate the Ascend 910C is limited to 7-nanometer designs and trails NVIDIA in processing power. Analysts project Huawei Technologies may face critical memory shortages by the end of 2025 as its existing stockpiles of HBM2E chips deplete.
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