Bitmain Refutes Allegations of Involvement in Huawei Supply Chain Probe

Bitmain, a leading cryptocurrency mining hardware manufacturer, has denied recent claims linking it to a supply chain investigation involving Huawei. The company issued a statement on Twitter, calling the reports “false and baseless” and clarifying that it is not involved in the probe. Bitmain also warned of possible legal action against media outlets spreading misinformation.

The controversy emerged following a Reuters report stating that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) had halted chip shipments to Sophgo, a Chinese chipmaker with connections to Bitmain. This move followed the discovery of a TSMC-made chip embedded in Huawei’s Ascend 910B AI processor, reportedly raising concerns about a potential breach of U.S. export restrictions.

TSMC has since notified U.S. and Taiwanese authorities and suspended shipments to Sophgo while an investigation is underway. The U.S. Department of Commerce, responsible for enforcing export controls, acknowledged awareness of the situation but did not confirm whether an official probe had commenced.

In response to the allegations, Huawei has denied sourcing chips from TSMC since 2020, when the U.S. enacted export restrictions aimed at curbing the tech giant’s access to foreign technologies involving U.S. components. The restrictions fall under the Foreign Direct Product Rule (FDPR), prohibiting foreign companies from selling advanced chips to Huawei without a U.S. license.

Sophgo, co-founded by Micree Zhan, former CEO of Bitmain, also denied any involvement with Huawei, asserting its compliance with export regulations. Zhan, who was removed from Bitmain in 2019 after a dispute with co-founder Jihan Wu, later regained partial control through legal means in 2020.

Meanwhile, Huawei continues to face challenges from U.S. regulatory restrictions due to national security concerns, prompting the company to seek alternative supply chain solutions.