Proposals to develop and produce integrated circuits were popular at the just concluded sessions of the Chinese legislature (NPC) and advisory body (CPPCC) in order to attain technology self-sufficiency. Analysts and legislators called for greater efforts to ratchet up innovation and production of microchips. More importantly, more efforts are required to promote the use of locally developed chips. At a time when Moore's law is no longer valid, a rare opportunity emerges for the development of IC technology and industry development, fanning hopes for China to catch up with the Western advanced countries at a quicker pace, Deng Zhonghan, Commander-in-Chief of the Starlight China Chip Project said. Today it is no longer enough to pack more transistors onto each chip to enhance performance. Addressing the West's crackdown on Chinese IC firms that inhibits purchases of advanced mask aligner tools, amplifies the shortage of high-end materials and professional talent, Deng proposed that the rollout of more powerful policies could be considered.
The U.S. is also pushing chip development. U.S. President Joe Biden pressed Congress to finalize a bill to beef up U.S. competitiveness against China in the microchip field. The bill would potentially include funds of USD52 billion for the U.S. semiconductor sector. The European Commission proposed the European Chips Act in February, which includes the Chips for Europe Initiative with €11 billion made available to strengthen chip research, development and innovation.
According to Deng's proposal, China should continue to pool national resources, and ramp up policy and funding support for IC initiatives. The sci-tech innovation-heavy STAR Market in Shanghai needs to expedite listings of core chip businesses. The number of chip-focused suggestions during the two sessions indicates an increased drive to foster the country's homegrown chip capabilities, Ma Jihui, a veteran telecommunication industry analyst based in Beijing, told the Global Times. “But other than an even sharper focus on chip self-sufficiency, what the country needs is specific plans that break down the national vision into feasible projects that fit into those chip-hungry industries,” Ma said. Rather than a host of local governments flooding into chip initiatives, an issue often seen whenever a national economic push tops the government agenda, a more nuanced and sophisticated approach to calibrating the chip push is needed, he noted. One of the weak links of the indigenous chip push is the insufficient use of locally developed chip products, according to Ma, due to concerns that some local chips are not on par with their overseas peers, the Global Times reports.
