For #China chip industry watchers out there, a tweet thread by @JChengWSJ worth reading. How about geopolitics galvanised a critical technological race: Also a thread to empty my notebook on recent research into the space: 1/ https://twitter.com/JChengWSJ/status/1328526018416545792

2/ China semiconductor firms raised nearly $38 bln so far this year through public offerings, share placements and asset sales—more than double last year’s total. One of the stranger bedfellows? A cement company from Gansu investing $38 mln to help fund a chip project in Anhui.

3/ More than 50,000 firms registered as semiconductor-related in China this year. A sweep by @raffaelehuang shows these includes restaurant businesses, real-estate developers and even one escape-room entertainment company. Many are looking to benefit from favorable govt policy..

4/ See the State Council policy doc on chip development issued over summer. Major tax waivers, priority access to gov-backed funding, listing and issuing bonds. Also gives you easier access to college-industry cooperation and talent schemes ( @ByXiaoXiao ) http://gov.cn/zhengce/content/2020-08/04/content_5532370.htm?trs=1

5/ Probably worth emphasizing how large China's chip dependency is. Its the world's biggest importer of chips and China-made processors are ~5 years behind global players. Customs data shows China mported more than $300 bln in foreign chips last year, mostly with American IP.

6/ What's worth highlighting now is the huge effort to retain and train talent for the chip industry. Great spot by @supchinanews earlier on a vocational institute open to bridge a talent gap. https://supchina.com/2020/11/05/nanjing-launches-chip-university-in-bid-to-fill-chinas-semiconductor-talent-gap/