On Thursday, China’s Ministry of Commerce issued an order, effectively blacklisting Canadian research firm TechInsights by designating it as an “Unreliable Entity.” The order bans Chinese citizens and companies from any transactions with TechInsights, including sharing sensitive information with the Canadian company, which specializes in analysis of the semiconductor industry and advanced chips. The Chinese government didn’t explain what drove the order, except to say it’ll “safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests.” But the blacklisting comes a week after TechInsights discovered evidence that Huawei’s AI chip, the Ascend 910C, contains components from Taiwan’s TSMC, Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix. TechInsights conducted a teardown of the Ascend 910C, which is Huawei’s response to Nvidia’s AI training chips. The discovery highlights how China continues to find ways to source foreign chips, despite US efforts to cut off Huawei’s sourcing. The tactics hav...