The Bitmain-affiliated Chinese chipmaker Xiamen Sophgo has denied any commercial ties to Huawei. In response to a continuing investigation by U.S. authorities into potential sanctions violations pertaining to Huawei’s restricted access to cutting-edge technology, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) decided to stop its shipments to Sophgo.
The U.S. Department of Commerce launched the investigation to find out if TSMC intentionally supplied AI chips to Huawei, a business that has been subject to U.S. sanctions since 2020 because of national security concerns. According to reports, Sophgo ordered chips from TSMC that looked similar to the Ascend 910B chip used in Huawei’s AI products.
In an official statement on its website, Sophgo vehemently denied having any direct or indirect business ties to Huawei, adding that it complies with all applicable international rules and regulations. Sophgo stressed that TSMC’s own business operations and goods are unrelated to the investigation into its interactions with Huawei.
Micree Zhan, a co-founder of Bitmain, founded Sophgo in 2019 and has close ties to Bitmain, which had previously entered the AI chip development space under Zhan’s direction. Zhan left Bitmain in 2019 as a result of internal conflicts sparked by the company’s strategy to move away from cryptocurrency mining and toward artificial intelligence.
Sophgo denies involvement in the U.S. investigation into TSMC and Huawei, despite its ties to Bitmain.
