US National Security Advisor seeks more info about chip in new Huawei smartphones

Washington, Sep 6 (IANS) US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has revealed that the Joe Biden government seeks to know more about the new, ‘made in China’ Huawei chipset used in the Mate 60 Pro smartphone.

“I’m going to withhold comment on the particular chip in question until we get more information about precisely its character and composition,” Sullivan replied to a question during a press briefing late on Tuesday.

He also reflected in the statement about the unknown specifications of the new Huawei chip.

“From my perspective though, what it tells us, regardless, is that the United States should continue on its course of a ‘small yard, high fence’ set of technology restrictions focused narrowly on national security concerns, not on the broader question of commercial decoupling. That is where our emphasis has been. That’s where it’s going to continue, sort of, regardless of the outcome,” he emphasised.

Sullivan further said that in terms of characterizing the chip in question, “that’s something that we need to gain more information from before we make any definitive comments on it”.

It is reported that the Chinese company is using a homemade advanced 7nm chipset, identified as Kirin 9000s.

Huawei, however, is not promoting this chipset along with the Mate 60 Pro, which has raised further questions about the nature of the chipset.

The company started selling its Mate 60 Pro phone last week, without much information about the chipset inside.

Huawei and China’s Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) built an advanced 7-nanometer processor to power the latest smartphone, according to a report by market analysis firm TechInsights.

The smartphone’s launch coincided with a visit by US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in China.

Chinese conglomerate Huawei said last month that its consumer business (which includes smartphones) rose 2 per cent to 103.5 billion yuan (over $14.3 billion) in the first half of 2023, showing definite signs of growth after substantial decline in its smartphone sales in the past two years amid the US sanctions.