The US says ASML’s top chip tool may be in China. ASML says it isn’t
There's a commercial logic that cuts against the idea that ASML would risk its export license to arm a Chinese customer.
The U.S. Commerce Secretary has told executives at ASML, a Dutch chipmaker, that he believes one of their extreme ultraviolet lithography machines may have ended up in China, which would violate export controls. ASML denies that any such machine exists in China and says it tracks every tool it has ever shipped, while U.S. officials claim to have evidence but have not publicly disclosed it. ASML is the only company that makes the specialized machines capable of printing the most advanced semiconductor patterns, making it the most important chipmaker tool supplier outside of major chip manufacturers themselves. If a machine did reach China, it would represent a significant breach of export controls designed to prevent advanced chip technology from reaching Beijing's military and industrial base.
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