After the US House passed the TikTok ban bill, VCPost reported that American companies are bracing for a possible retaliation by China. Today, China has already made the first move. 

Per Channel News Asia, China has revealed new guidelines aimed at phasing out the use of US-manufactured microprocessors from Intel and AMD in government personal computers and servers.

According to the report, the procurement directive also seeks to diminish reliance on Microsoft's Windows operating system and foreign-made database software, favoring domestic alternatives.

Government agencies at or above the township level have been instructed to incorporate criteria prioritizing the adoption of "safe and reliable" processors and operating systems in their purchasing decisions.

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Were US-Manufactured Microprocessors Already Tagged As Unsafe in China?

In late December, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released a statement delineating three separate lists of CPUs, operating systems, and centralized databases categorized as "safe and reliable" for three years after publication. 

All items listed hailed from Chinese companies, as confirmed by checks conducted by Reuters. No US-manufactured microprocessors made it to the list.

Requests for comment sent to the State Council Information Office, the media liaison for China's Cabinet, were not immediately responded to.

Similarly, both Intel and AMD remained silent in response to inquiries on what their plans would be following China's move.

Interestingly, China's decision to exclude Intel and AMD chips from government computers coincides with the United States' efforts to strengthen its own semiconductor industry. 

The Biden administration's CHIPS and Science Act, enacted in 2022, is part of a broader strategy to boost semiconductor manufacturing within the US. This legislation provides financial support, including subsidies, to domestic chip production, focusing on advancing semiconductor technologies. By investing in domestic production, the US aims to reduce its reliance on semiconductor imports from China and Taiwan, thereby enhancing national security and economic competitiveness in the technology sector.

READ MORE: US And China Relations In Danger After Threat of Espionage and Economic Challenges