Huawei’s launch of its new MateBook Pro X, which uses Intel’s latest Meteor Lake processor, has angered Republican members of the US Congress.
Revealed last week, the all-new Huawei laptop is notable for using one of Intel’s current-generation Core Ultra processors, based on Meteor Lake, which feature a Neural Processing Unit (NPU) dedicated to accelerate AI workloads.
If Huawei’s access to Western technology is severely restricted by American sanctions, it can still buy Intel processors thanks to a license it has had since the end of 2020.
According to Reuters, the fact that Huawei was able to use Intel’s latest processor sparked an outcry among Republican lawmakers. “One of the biggest mysteries in Washington, D.C., is why the Commerce Department continues to allow the shipment of American technology to Huawei,” said House Representative Michael Gallagher, chairman of the select committee of China, in a press release.
Another House Republican, Michael McCaul, was quoted as saying: “Two years ago, I was told that licensing to Huawei would stop. Today, it does not appear that the policy has changed. »
Huawei is still able to obtain Intel processors thanks to a special export license that President Trump granted to Intel near the end of his term. The license is set to expire later this year as it appears unlikely that Intel will request its renewal or that the Commerce Department will approve it.
Even though the Biden administration was not responsible for issuing the export license, the Commerce Department planned to revoke it at some point last year. However, these plans were canceled at the end of 2023, allowing Intel to continue selling its chips to Huawei until 2024. It is unclear why these plans were abandoned, but it may be because the date of expiration was already near.
The Commerce Department tried to placate angry lawmakers last week by sending Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Kevin Kurland to a Senate subcommittee meeting. Kurland claimed that the export restrictions existed only to prevent Huawei from engaging in “malicious activities” and not to completely immobilize the Chinese tech giant.
Even when its access to Intel processors ends later this year, Huawei could fill the gap with its own silicon. Huawei is currently manufacturing Kirin 9000S smartphone chips using SMIC’s latest 7nm process, although apparently they cannot be produced in large quantities, according to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
However, this could change in the future, as Huawei invests R&D funds into chipmaking tools, part of a drive to create China’s own extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines .
The move to EUV would be a substantial upgrade for SMIC’s 7nm node, which would use older deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography and therefore suffer from reduced yields. ®
