SMIC
Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation
Market Share
~6% global foundry revenue
Key Product
Mature-node logic (14nm/28nm) for domestic Chinese customers
Bottleneck Status
EUV import ban blocks sub-7nm; US Entity Listed
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Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) was founded in Shanghai in 2000 and has grown into China's largest semiconductor foundry, with fabs in Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, and Shenzhen. It is publicly listed in Hong Kong (0981.HK) and on the Shanghai STAR Market (688981.SH). Despite substantial state support and a technical roadmap that once aimed for competitive parity with TSMC and Samsung, SMIC faces an equipment ceiling imposed by Western export controls. SMIC's technology ceiling sits at approximately 7–14nm. In late 2023, Huawei's Mate 60 Pro smartphone was found to contain a Kirin 9000s processor reportedly fabricated by SMIC at a 7nm-class node — a surprise achievement accomplished without EUV, using multiple patterning with DUV equipment. However, this process is slow, expensive, and yield-limited compared to TSMC's mainstream 7nm production. Without EUV access, scaling below 5nm is considered effectively impossible given current multi-patterning limitations. The December 2020 Entity List addition prevents SMIC from obtaining U.S.-origin equipment and technology for sub-10nm production without a license that is presumed to be denied. It can still receive some older-generation tooling under legacy licenses — including etch, CVD, and deposition equipment from Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, and Lam Research — for mature nodes. Silicon wafers from Shin-Etsu and photoresist from Sumitomo Chemical continue to flow under existing arrangements. SMIC's strategic role in China's semiconductor self-sufficiency push makes it a central actor in the export-control story. The Chinese government has committed hundreds of billions of yuan to support SMIC and the broader domestic semiconductor ecosystem, including domestic equipment makers (AMEC, NAURA) and EDA/materials suppliers, aiming to reduce reliance on the restricted Western supply chain over the long term.
Connected companies
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Critical path — raw silicon to deployment
The tightest single-source dependencies, in order.
EQUIPMENT
ASML
EUV & DUV lithography systems
MATERIALS
Shin-Etsu Chemical
300mm silicon wafers and photoresist
MATERIALS
SUMCO
300mm and 200mm silicon wafers
FOUNDRIES
SMIC
Mature-node logic (14nm/28nm) for domestic Chinese customers
CHIP DESIGNERS
Huawei / HiSilicon
Kirin 9000s (5G SoC), Ascend 910 AI accelerator
CHIP DESIGNERS
Cambricon
MLU370 AI accelerator, MLU590 (SMIC mature-node)
Export controls touching SMIC
China Gallium & Germanium Export Controls (Aug 2023)
China's Ministry of Commerce and Customs implemented export licensing requirements for gallium and germanium products, effective August 1, 2023. The controls cover 8 gallium-related items (including gallium metal, gallium nitride, and gallium arsenide) and 6 germanium-related items (including germanium metal, germanium dioxide, and germanium epitaxial growth wafers). Exporters must apply to the Ministry of Commerce for licenses, which are reviewed for national security and non-proliferation considerations. China produces approximately 80% of the world's gallium and 60% of its germanium, making these controls a direct leverage point over semiconductor and compound-semiconductor supply chains globally.
▲ 13 companies affected
Netherlands EUV & DUV Lithography Export Control (Sep 2023)
The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs required ASML to obtain export licenses for its deep-ultraviolet (DUV) lithography systems and extended the existing ban on EUV systems. ASML is the sole manufacturer of EUV machines globally; the controls prevent China from acquiring the equipment needed to produce chips at leading-edge nodes. The policy was developed in alignment with U.S. and Japanese export control frameworks.
▲ 12 companies affected
U.S.–Netherlands–Japan Trilateral Chip Equipment Alignment (Jan 2023)
Following extensive diplomatic negotiations, the United States, the Netherlands, and Japan reached an informal multilateral agreement — announced on or around January 27, 2023 — to align their semiconductor equipment export control frameworks. The Netherlands subsequently imposed DUV licensing requirements on ASML (effective September 2023), and Japan expanded its controls to 23 categories of advanced fab equipment (effective July 2023). The trilateral alignment effectively closed the most significant loopholes in restricting China's access to the equipment needed for leading-edge chip production, since restrictions by any single ally could previously be circumvented through the others.
▲ 12 companies affected
QWho supplies SMIC?
SMIC relies on 9 upstream suppliers across the AI chip supply chain.
ASML (Sole maker of EUV lithography machines), Shin-Etsu Chemical (World's largest silicon wafer supplier), Sumitomo Chemical (Key supplier of EUV photoresist and compound semiconductors), Applied Materials (Largest semiconductor equipment maker by revenue), Tokyo Electron (Leading maker of etch and deposition equipment), and 4 more.
QWhat does SMIC make?
China's largest foundry; capped at 14nm without EUV access; Entity Listed 2020
Key products Mature-node logic (14nm/28nm) for domestic Chinese customers