Republican Congressman John Moolenaar, who leads the House Select Committee on China, is urging the Trump administration to ensure that chip manufacturers do not send advanced logic chips to untrusted Chinese firms.

Background

In January 2025, the Biden administration introduced a new rule requiring chip manufacturers to scrutinize orders of advanced chips from companies that could be serving as a front for untrusted firms from China and other countries. This rule was a response to revelations that Chinese chip designer Sophgo had chips manufactured at TSMC that were later discovered inside AI processors marketed by Huawei, a company heavily sanctioned by the United States.

However, after President Donald Trump took office, his administration announced that it did not plan to enforce another Biden-era chip regulation, leading to uncertainty about the enforcement of that measure. Moolenaar described the measure as a critical step in preventing China from accessing high-end US chips and preserving America’s technological edge.

Moolenaar sent a letter to Jeffrey Kessler, who oversees export controls at the Commerce Department, urging the department to enforce the rule. The letter highlights the importance of closing the loophole that Huawei and Sophgo exploited and warns that if chip factories like TSMC determine that their chips are not subject to the rules, it would dramatically increase the risk of another SophGo-like export control failure.

Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.