(Bloomberg) — Huawei Technologies Co.’s latest smartphones feature a version of the advanced Chinese-made processor it unveiled last year, an independent analysis found, underscoring the Chinese company’s ability to maintain production of the controversial chip.
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The Pura 70 series that Huawei unveiled last week sports the Kirin 9010 processor, consultancy TechInsights discovered during a teardown of the device. This is a newer version of the Kirin 9000 manufactured by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. for the Mate 60 Pro, which alarmed officials in Washington who believed a 7-nanometer chip was beyond China’s capabilities.
Huawei has enjoyed a resurgence since Mate’s debut in August, riding a wave of celebrations around its ability to achieve sophisticated semiconductor manufacturing despite growing restrictions on exports of U.S. technology. US officials are now considering additional sanctions aimed at reining in the company and more broadly China’s semiconductor ambitions.
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TechInsights, which was the first to identify the original 9000 in collaboration with Bloomberg News, said it discovered “with high confidence” that the Pura contained a Huawei Kirin 9010 made using the so-called 7nm N+2 process of the SMIC, an improved version of the typical process. 7nm manufacturing.
Formerly known as the P series, the Pura line has traditionally sold itself on the capabilities of its cameras. Giving domestic users a new option could put additional pressure on the iPhone, which isn’t scheduled to upgrade until September.
For Huawei, it’s another step toward rebuilding a consumer company devastated by Trump-era sanctions. The company was roughly tied with Apple Inc. in China market share in the first quarter, underscoring how it has eroded the iPhone maker’s domestic market share in recent months.
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–With the help of Gao Yuan.
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