Shockingly, a counterfeit factory has produced a 3-nanometer chip.

Chapter 372 The Panic of Asmail

"We can afford to wait 18 months."

Morris Chang then looked at the legal department: "Although we can fight back, we must not let them find any fault with us. Go through all the compliance documents and technical parameters according to the relevant clauses one by one to ensure that there is nothing that can be used against us."

After confirming that the general counsel had nodded, he looked at everyone again:

"As for targeting?"

As long as they have a technological advantage, they will need us to counterbalance Transsion, and then everything will be fine.

Since Asmail wants to make money while lying down, let's switch players.

Let them know that monopolies can be broken.

Everyone in the conference room nodded excitedly. After all, even a clay Buddha has some spirit, let alone TSMC!

"The first batch will consist of 20 units, which will replace our old production lines at our Tainan plant."

We ordered two lithography machines for the first batch, and will place additional orders based on yield and cost data.

No one spoke in the meeting room; they all knew this was no ordinary purchase.

This is a red line...

However, if successful, TSMC will significantly reduce costs, making it a necessary solution.

……

the other side.

Asmaier's conference room.

"What did you say?"

Asmayer CEO Peter Winninger's voice sounded like something had shattered, revealing panic for the first time in front of everyone.

As for all of this, it all started at 4 a.m. when he was suddenly woken up by an urgent phone call.

He thought it was another factory fire, but the news he heard was even more terrifying than the fire: TSMC had ordered 20 MStar 193 dry-type printers from China.

"Has the message been confirmed?" he asked in a panic.

"Confirmed."

The purchase contract has been signed, for the first batch of 20 machines. They're being very high-profile about it; they say these lithography machines will replace the old production line at the Tainan plant, and…”

The Asian business manager sounded a little apprehensive, after all, TSMC wasn't the worst news, it was just the beginning.

"SanSang has also signed a contract for 5 units, and we expect to receive one this year."

Intel... is evaluating it, but there's a strong internal preference, and a result is expected soon.

Wen Ningke asked someone to move the phone a little further away, as if to confirm whether this was a dream or if he was still asleep.

After all, ASML has been virtually unbeatable in the DUV lithography machine market for 20 years.

Nikon tried to catch up, but was crushed by their immersion technology; Canon, after retreating to niche markets, has long lost any threatening capabilities.

They've become too accustomed to the taste of monopoly. Prices should have decreased by 5-8% annually, but instead they've raised them by so much every year...

Aside from a couple of complaints, the customer paid the full amount due, and if it were in China, they would also need to pay an additional queue-jumping fee.

But now, the China Semiconductor Fund, a plan they considered a joke, has really given them a slap in the face.

The key point is that this slap in the face doesn't taste good, nor is it funny.

Now the other side is laughing at them.

As a result, the meeting was a little chaotic, and almost every executive was pulled into the conference room as soon as they arrived.

Some people participated in the meeting online because they were unable to attend in person.

But no one could believe it. After all, how could they possibly set the price so low? And why would any manufacturers dare to buy their dry-type machines?

"Have the technical specifications been confirmed?"

Klaus Muller, the VP of Technology, had already seen the reports, but he still couldn't believe it, after all, it was China...

The saline-alkali wasteland of the semiconductor industry has now... produced equipment comparable to their immersion equipment using dry-type machines, even though they know it's a modified version of Transsion and not for sale.

But Transsion's strength is still there, and they will also steal their customers... Moreover, the advanced features are only temporary, and these modified models will be sold sooner or later.

When processes above 20nm are completed, immersion machines will be completely unnecessary, saving the country a significant amount of costs on production lines. How will manufacturers choose to proceed?

"What production capacity do they have at this resolution?"

"According to an assessment report leaked from TSMC."

The marketing director felt that this report was the answer he wanted them to see.

"The exact resolution is uncertain, but it is about 15% higher than our equivalent model, and the production capacity is 220 pieces per hour, which is the same as ours."

But the key is that they used a new type of solid-state light source and projection system, achieving image fidelity in a single exposure that is close to what we would need two or even three exposures to achieve.

"impossible."

Muller said casually.

"We have evaluated the power and stability of this technology path for solid-state light sources, and it simply does not meet the requirements for mass production."

How did they do it?

"I don't know. The technical details are being kept very secret."

Currently, all that is known is that part of the core development team consists of technical experts poached by CSOT from countries such as the Netherlands, Japan, and the United States after the 2008 financial crisis.

The conference room fell silent. Huaxing had been planning this for five years, based on their understanding of Chinese research and development…

This dry lithography machine is definitely not the most advanced. Even the MStar C series on display is an outdated product. Perhaps their factories have already started using their own immersion lithography machines.

So...

Winningk's voice was filled with boundless fear.

"This is a company led by a semiconductor fund that has used a technological approach we never even imagined to create a machine that is almost half the price of ours and performs better."

This question doesn't need an answer; the answer is too obvious.

"What do we do now?"

The head office sales president wiped away his sweat.

"TSMC, SanSang, and Intel are all watching us. If they transfer orders on a large scale, the revenue of this line will be halved."

Although it's not the most advanced, its price advantage makes it our main sales driver.

The sales director's words once again laid bare a topic before them.

TSMC and SanSang are their shareholders, but they are more customers. Their investment is simply to get lithography machines as soon as possible.

Since they are customers... then we should let the price speak for itself.

"Lower the price!"

Müller sighed silently. His inherent pride wouldn't allow him to say those words, but faced with reality, they had to bow their heads.

"Reducing the price of the XT:1450 from 1.4 million to 1.2 million, or even lower."

Their price was 8000 million, and ours was indeed a bit higher, but if we lower it to 1.2 million, the customers will come back.

After all, industrial support...

"and then?"

The CFO immediately objected.

"Our cost structure is what it is: American light sources, German lenses, English vacuum systems... Our supply chain is from seven countries and eight different systems, and logistics and management costs alone account for 30% of our costs."

If it drops to 120 million, the gross profit per unit will only be 10%; if it drops to 100 million, it will result in a loss.