SiCarrier of China Unveils Comprehensive Chip Equipment Lineup at SEMICON 2025, Challenging ASML’s Market Hold

SiCarrier, the largest chip equipment manufacturer in China, has just showcased an impressive suite of chipmaking tools designed to elevate the nation’s semiconductor production to unprecedented heights.

In recent years, China’s advancements in the semiconductor industry have been noteworthy, driven by the country’s determination to challenge global dominance in this field. Companies like Huawei and SMIC, among others, have significantly contributed to establishing China’s own chip production capabilities, and they’ve achieved notable success. However, SiCarrier is a name that often flies under the radar. Thought to be backed by Huawei, SiCarrier specializes in crafting chipmaking tools. During SEMICON 2025 in China, the company revealed its latest tool lineup, clearly signaling its ambition to remain unfettered by external pressures.

A tweet by @zephyr_z9 highlighted SiCarrier’s newly launched equipment catalog at SEMICON, pointing out that the company has developed various chipmaking tools, such as Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) systems, essential in semiconductor fabrication for creating integrated circuits. Although the catalog features many such tools, lithography equipment is conspicuously absent, possibly hinting at SiCarrier’s strategic choices. This new array of products is aimed at challenging industry giants like ASML and Applied Materials. However, the effectiveness of these tools in the domestic market remains to be seen.

At the SEMICON event, Du Lijun, the President of SiCarrier, stated that their domestic chipmaking tools are capable of producing 5nm chips. Nevertheless, using non-optical technology raises yield rate challenges, making their output costlier than international alternatives. To overcome this, SiCarrier is collaborating with SMIC and Huawei, aiming for a breakthrough given the crucial importance of achieving chip production autonomy for China.

“The path might involve leveraging non-optical technologies, using our process equipment to address some lithography hurdles,” Du Lijun commented via Reuters.

SiCarrier’s mission is to shift the semiconductor industry’s balance away from countries like the Netherlands, a key supplier of chipmaking tools. Earlier reports indicated that SiCarrier is partnering with Huawei and the Shenzhen government to develop custom Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) prototypes centered on laser-induced discharge plasma (LDP). This development marks the initial phase of China’s journey to build its own EUV lithography equipment, potentially overcoming the final obstacle in creating cutting-edge semiconductors independently.