Apple Has Cancelled its Deal with YMTC Amid US Sanctions
In September, we broke the news that Apple, the most valuable corporation in the world, will be purchasing part of its 3D NAND flash chips from the Chinese firm Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp. (YMTC). On the other hand, as a result of the most recent political pressure from the United States government, Apple is said to have terminated all contracts with the Chinese company and will not use their 3D NAND chips in the manufacturing of any of their products, including iPhones, iPads, and Mac computers.
The United States ratcheted tensions with Beijing by adding China’s largest memory chipmaker YMTC and 30 other Chinese organizations to a list of enterprises that United States inspectors have been unable to check. This started a 60-day clock that may trigger far worse sanctions. In addition, the United States Department of Commerce is looking into YMTC to see whether or not it violated Washington’s export rules when it sold semiconductors to the banned Chinese telecoms corporation Huawei Technologies Co Ltd.
Even though YTMC’s Xstacking 3.0 six-plane design offers triple-level cell storage with I/O speeds of 2400 MT/s, Apple is not going to source any NAND Flash memory since the political relationship between the United States and China is becoming more regulated. However, considering the enormous demand for NAND Flash and the new customers, this may not be a deal breaker for firms. As for Apple, the business has signed contracts with Kioxia, SK Hynix, and Samsung, in addition to other companies, providing a consistent storage supply for the company’s potential strategies.
By shutting off China’s access to specific semiconductor chips manufactured anywhere in the globe using US equipment, the comprehensive set of export limitations that the Biden administration has imposed on China is an attempt to halt Beijing’s technical and military advancements. The restrictions imposed immediately impact customers through higher product prices.
Source: Nikkei Asia
