> The 14nm technology is at least three generations behind the latest advances available on the market but it is already the second-best technology that China’s chipmaking champion Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. owns.

Out of curiosity, what is the west gaining by restricting more advanced chips? China can build computers, smartphones, and weapons with the older generation of chips.

Is it to make their chip industry uncompetitive so we don’t become dependent on them?

Those chips exclusively come from West-aligned geographies. China can't fully disentangle its supply chain from that of the West without building EUV-based technologies. Taiwan remains a shared pressure point so long as China needs TSMC.

This buys time for the West to build more defensible fab infrastructure before China attempts to take Taiwan or damage its fabs.

Knowing this means that time is ticking on their leverage, wouldn't this speed up the desire of China to take Taiwan?

The reasoning of the Biden administration is:

The Biden administration has said the measures are aimed at preventing Beijing’s military from obtaining advanced semiconductors.

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From what I understand is that the military uses older chips which China happens to manufacture. So the clear aim is to probably cripple consumer electronics and mobile phone manufacturers like Huawei, which it seems they already have in many markets.

Wonder if this will backfire and accelerate the Chinese push into more advanced chips by a couple of years.

Related articles:

https://asiatimes.com/2022/11/harvard-guru-gives-biden-a-d-f...

https://asiatimes.com/2022/12/us-chip-ban-wont-short-circuit...

https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3158527/beware-...