The U.S. government just told ASML one of its most restricted machines may be inside China - Startup Fortune

The recent warning from the U.S. government to ASML regarding the possible entry of its most restricted EUV lithography machines into China underscores the fragility of Western export controls in adva... Read original →

The U.S. warning to ASML reveals a structural flaw in export enforcement: if an EUV tool has indeed entered China, it could catalyze SMIC’s sub-7nm development through reverse engineering of critical subsystems like alignment sensors or photoresist stacks. This forces ASML into higher compliance overhead—especially on service and spare parts—and prompts TSMC, Samsung, and Intel to recalibrate their mainland China fab strategies. Washington may respond with component-level bans, restricting maintenance access to Cymer light sources or Zeiss optics. Over the next 18 months, China will likely double down on DUV multi-patterning combined with chiplet integration, while fissures widen within the export control coalition, as the Netherlands and Japan balance economic exposure against strategic alignment.