SMIC gains market share in chip manufacturing

SMIC has expanded its position as the world’s third-largest chipmaker, with TrendForce reporting that the company held 5.4% of the semiconductor manufacturing market in Q2 this year, up from 5.1% in Q1. The company generated quarterly revenue from domestic firms producing homegrown silicon, and the report indicated that broader capacity has increased across the supply chain.

The company’s most advanced processes include SMIC N+2, a 7 nm-class node used by Huawei for its Ascend series of AI accelerators and other infrastructure components, and SMIC N+3, a 5 nm-class node available to customers. SMIC relies on DUV lithography to print silicon designs, but its progress remains constrained by lack of access to EUV tools after ASML restricted exports of its EUV scanners.