ASML: we can disable our machines remotely
What happens if China invades Taiwan? ASML and TSMC will shut their factories down – from anywhere in the world.
According to Bloomberg, lithograohy specialist ASML has told the Dutch government it can deactivate its extreme ultraviolet (EUV) machines remotely if it needs to.
That said, it might not need to, even in the event of war. ASML’s EUV machines, each costing over EUR 200 million euros, demand a small army of technicians to run them. Would these specialists stay in Taiwan in the event of an invasion? Unlikely. And the machines would cease to function without them.
Still, TSMC and ASML clearly still feel it is necessary to remind the world of their ability to shut down if they wish. Of course, the Chinese can always develop their own advanced chips. And there is some evidence that they are making progress.
Earlier this year, it emerged that Huawei's Pura 70 series smartphones comprised an advanced made-in-China processor – the Kirin 9010 chip made by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. Reports said the Kirin 9010 was fabricated using SMIC’s advanced 7nm N+2 process.
