Not 3nm or 5nm, but it would be great if we solve 7nm chip issues: Huawei

Huawei Executive Director – Zhang Pingan said during his keynote at an event that the company focuses on solving the 7nm chip issues instead of looking forward to 3nm or 5nm processes. The aim is to enhance chipset capabilities to a better extent.

The Chinese phone maker recently attended the 2024 China Mobile Computing Power Network event and discussed its innovative direction for powerful semiconductors.

Also designated as the CEO of Huawei Cloud, Zhang Pingan says that the company has to improve its 7nm chip technology and production to resolve the ongoing issues. The ideology is to work on the chip’s capabilities and not on a single process.

Zhang further states that Huawei aims to concentrate on the chip’s architecture, giving it bandwidth power to eliminate the semiconductor’s weak points.

When asked about the domestic semiconductors’ status and development, Zhang replied:

“We will not get 3nm, and we will not get 5nm. It would be very, very good if we could solve 7nm. We hope to use space, bandwidth, and energy to exchange for our chip defects.”

Zhang also said that rivals like TSMC continue to raise their 3nm chip production as they aren’t facing U.S. sanctions. However, the case is the opposite for China which has no such way to build 3/5nm processors for the moment. 3nm requires advanced chip-making equipment which is currently absent in the native region.

You can check the full keynote HERE

Kirin 5G 7nm process chip (Image Credits: Huawei)

Huawei efforts in chipmaking!

Despite U.S. trade export regulations, the Chinese OEM looks forward to advanced chip development. Some early reports suggested that Huawei is working with SMIC to lay the production line for 5nm chips. Perhaps the results will appear later this year.

Chinese companies have also shifted their focal point on enhancing the 28nm and more mature processes instead of leaping on advanced techs for the moment. Estimates say that the region could boost the 28nm chip production up to 39% by 2027.

The Chairman of China’s Semiconductor Industry Association Wei Shaojun earlier said in a conference that 14nm and 28nm chips could perform like 7nm processors. The only thing required is better capabilities that can enrich the functioning.

A rumor said that Huawei could plan the development of a 3nm chip amid growing U.S. challenges. But it seems the executive has now given a response to this matter.

Other details point out that China chipmakers are indulging in around 18 projects related to semiconductors. This may ultimately raise the chip production volume by 13% YoY by producing 8.6 million wafers every month in 2024.

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