Intel is evaluating wet etch equipment from ACM Research, a U.S.-based maker of fab tools that is primarily focused on China and has extensive operations in the People's Republic, for potential use with its vital process technology, Reuters claims. While Intel tests all kinds of tools from numerous makers of equipment, these particular etching machines raise political and national security concerns. Furthermore, Walden International, a venture capital firm founded and chaired by Intel chief executive Lip Bu Tan, invested in ACM in 2019.
According to sources cited by Reuters, Intel assessed two wet etch tools from ACM Research for use with its crucially important 14A manufacturing process, which is scheduled for an initial rollout in 2027 and which is considered the company's make-or-break foundry effort. Earlier this year, Intel said that if it does not gain at least one big external customer for 14A, it may delay rollout of the production node, or even shelve it. There is no confirmation that the evaluated tools were approved for production use. Nevertheless, Intel's willingness to test equipment from a supplier with sanctioned units certainly raises many political and national security concerns. ACM Research recently confirmed that it had shipped tools to U.S. clients.
