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yesterday

US halts chip design software exports to China

The Commerce Department directive compels Synopsys, Cadence, Siemens EDA to seek export licenses for chip design tools to curb China’s AI chip ambitions.

Semiconductor chips are seen on a circuit board of a computer in this illustration picture taken February 25, 2022. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration/File Photo
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Overview

  • On May 23, the Bureau of Industry and Security sent letters instructing Synopsys, Cadence, Siemens EDA to halt software shipments to Chinese clients or secure new export licenses.
  • Those three firms control about 80 percent of China’s electronic design automation market and saw shares drop around 10 percent after the news.
  • The move extends earlier restrictions on Nvidia’s AI chips and reflects a broader effort to limit China’s advanced AI and military semiconductor development.
  • The directive falls within a fragile 90-day tariff truce from Geneva trade talks, raising concerns that the temporary pause in US-China tensions may not hold.
  • China condemned the export controls and domestic EDA companies such as Empyrean Technology, Primarius and Semitronix have increased their market share following the restrictions.