According to the Financial Times, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the US Department of Commerce has reportedly issued notices to the top three global electronic design automation (EDA) software suppliers - Synopsys, Cadence, and Siemens EDA - requesting them to cease providing services to Chinese customers. Another industry insider confirmed that these three companies did receive notification from BIS, but the specific content is still unclear.
Insiders have revealed that the US government is evaluating a broader policy to restrict the sale of chip design software to China. As part of the action, BIS has recently sent letters to some leading EDA suppliers requesting a suspension of shipments to Chinese customers.
In response, a BIS spokesperson stated, "The US Department of Commerce is reviewing exports involving strategic projects in China. In some cases, existing export licenses may be suspended or additional license requirements may be imposed during the review period
Sassine Ghazi, CEO of New Think Technology, stated in a conference call on May 28th that the company has not yet received formal notification from BIS, but he acknowledged reports of the letter, stating, "We cannot speculate on the potential impact of the notification that has not yet been received.
The United States' implementation of EDA supply cut-off to China is not the first time. In 2019, after Huawei was included in the "Entity List", New Think Technology, Kaiden Electronics, and Mentor Graphics (now Siemens EDA) were required to suspend software licensing and updates to Huawei.
In August 2022, the US Department of Commerce further tightened export controls on EDA tools used for advanced process chip design at 3 nanometers and below, aimed at limiting China's development in the field of cutting-edge chip design.
These ongoing measures indicate that cutting off EDA supply to China is a key link in the US semiconductor strategy, with the core goal of curbing China's ability to improve in high-end chip design and manufacturing.
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