By Alan Patterson, EETimes (December 16, 2020)
TAIPEI – Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) announced two changes within the top management during this week.
On Dec. 15, the Shanghai-based chipmaker said it has appointed industry veteran Chiang Shang-yi as executive director, vice chairman and member of the strategic committee. A day later, SMIC said its co-CEO and executive director Liang Mong-song may resign.
The appointment of Chiang comes about a month after he resigned as CEO from Wuhan Hongxin Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (HSMC), which ran out of cash. Both Chiang and Liang are former R&D executives from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC).
The US has made SMIC one of the latest targets of restrictions that are aimed to blunt the growth of China’s tech industry on fears that the nation will gain a competitive advantage in new industry segments such as 5G and AI. The Trump administration concluded there is an unacceptable risk that China’s largest chipmaker may use US production equipment and design tools for military purposes.