“[Today’s focus] is on innovation in industry, products, services, and business models, which ultimately will have to bring value,” Chen said in his interview with CGTN, the English channel of China Central Television (CCTV), which aired over the weekend. “The chip industry in China has not yet reached explosive growth, but that day will come over the next three to five years.”

27:21

Biden’s China tech policy goal: a 10 year handicap

Biden’s China tech policy goal: a 10 year handicap

“For example, the hottest AI chips are in need of state-of-the-art foundry and packaging technologies,” he said. “It can be predicted that, in the very near future, the importance of packaging technology may exceed the importance of foundry technology.”

He also suggested he is pinning his hope for the domestic industry on specialised chips, as chips are now often created for specific applications.

Chen did not mention YMTC in his interview, as he speaking in his capacity as chairman of the industry association.

A cascade of US sanctions on China’s top technology companies and semiconductor foundries, including YMTC, have prompted industry players to form closer ties and rally behind state support to find a way forward.

Chen said after making many mistakes in the past, China’s policymakers and industry players are still in search of the best way forward. A long period of trial and error has taught everyone which models are doomed to fail, he added.

Chen stopped short of providing a clear answer to the question of whether China could completely catch up with the US in chip making. He suggested that a slowing of “Moore’s Law” – the observation that the number of transistors in an integrated circuit doubles about every two years – is beneficial for China because it helps fuel innovation in other technologies such as advanced packaging.