It seems that every other day there is a new development in the technological cold war between China and the U.S. Following last week's call by the U.S. government to stop servicing systems sold by ASML to China, and the recent ban on Intel and AMD chips and Microsoft's Windows in government computers,

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (via The Register and Wall Street Journal) has ordered state-run telecom companies to phase out foreign-made chips by 2027.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (via The Register and Wall Street Journal) has ordered state-run telecom companies to phase out foreign-made chips and adopt domestically produced chips by 2027.

The move is certain to affect Intel and AMD's revenues, as China remains a major consumer of Western-made chips. The Chinese market as a whole is said to account for 27% and 15% of Intel and AMD's revenues, respectively. Chips from both manufacturers are widely used in telecommunication networks not only in China, but around the world.

And that's not all. Chinese chipmakers, including Huawei and SMIC, receive billions of dollars in subsidies from the Chinese government. This means that Intel and AMD will soon face more and cheaper competition from Chinese chipmakers in all markets. [But if semiconductors are equated with national security, it is not hard to imagine a total ban in the coming years. Tighter trade restrictions, tariffs, and protectionism are all steps on the road to such a possible future.

Imagine if China said PS5 is no good because it uses AMD chips.

AI is a hot topic at the moment, and it is only a matter of time before a viable quantum computer becomes available. x86, Arm, and banning Windows is one thing, but a system that can crack widely used encryption standards is a whole other level. Governments are reluctant to share their best technology.

The desire to protect communications and maintain security is not likely to go away any time soon, even if it is political hyperbole. What will the U.S. and China put on the banned list next?