The United States government has formally expressed concerns to Dutch semiconductor equipment manufacturer ASML that one of its highly restricted Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines may have been acquired by China. The development marks a significant escalation in the ongoing technology war between Washington and Beijing, focusing on the critical chokepoint of advanced chipmaking equipment.
According to a Bloomberg report, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick raised the issue with ASML senior leaders in a series of recent meetings, suggesting that one of the company’s top-of-the-line EUV machines might have bypassed export controls and reached Chinese shores. EUV lithography is the most advanced technology used to print the intricate patterns on cutting-edge microchips, and ASML is the sole global supplier of these machines, the same machines used by TSMC to manufacture chips for Nvidia and Apple.
ASML’s Detailed Rebuttal
ASML pushed back firmly against the allegations. In response to the US concerns, the company produced a document titled “No indication of any ASML EUV System in China,” which it circulated after an April meeting with Secretary Lutnick. The document details the location and operational status of all 314 EUV machines worldwide, with 26 additional units decommissioned. None are in China.
The company also highlighted the physical and logistical reality of its machines. Each EUV system is roughly the size of a school bus, manufactured in limited quantities, and requires constant on-site upkeep from ASML engineers. Customers cannot relocate the machines without ASML’s direct involvement. Crucially, ASML’s systems are designed to automatically detect “any interruption, abnormal behavior, or loss of connectivity” across its entire EUV portfolio, giving the company real-time visibility into the status of every machine it has ever shipped.
ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet stated that the company has “never shipped an EUV machine to China nor any component, module or equipment specially designed to be used in an EUV machine.” The Dutch foreign ministry added that the Netherlands enforces export restrictions “very strictly” and “always intervenes where necessary.”
What the US Claims to Have Found
Despite ASML’s denials, US officials maintain they have evidence of concern. Specifically, they point to specialty equipment used to transport EUV machines, as well as other components that could be used in EUV systems, that they believe may have reached China. The officials declined to disclose the full nature of the evidence, citing its sensitivity.
US officials have also raised the issue of earlier legal DUV shipments made before export controls were tightened during the Biden administration, suggesting a pattern of concern about the flow of advanced lithography technology to China. Some officials have accused ASML of “prioritizing short-term profits over national security,” a charge the company has rejected as “not only factually incorrect but significantly misleading.”
Why EUV Access Matters for China’s AI Ambitions
The strategic stakes are enormous. Huawei is China’s top AI chip rival to Nvidia, and the lack of access to EUV lithography is widely described as its “single toughest constraint” in developing competitive leading-edge chips. Huawei’s semiconductor chief recently touted innovations in making chips without EUV, a tacit acknowledgment that the company has been forced to find workarounds rather than close the gap directly.
(Related: Taiwan’s DPP Plans to Tighten AI Chip Export Controls to China)
Any confirmed access to an EUV machine would represent a transformational breakthrough for China’s semiconductor industry, potentially allowing it to manufacture chips at 3nm and below, the process nodes required for the most powerful AI accelerators. The US export control regime is specifically designed to prevent this outcome, making the allegations, even if unproven, a matter of the highest geopolitical sensitivity.
Competitive Dynamics Among US Chip Tool Makers
The dispute also has a commercial dimension. US chip tool makers including Lam Research, KLA Corp, and Applied Materials have complained about the competitive disadvantage they face relative to ASML, which, as a Dutch company, has historically been subject to less stringent US export controls. These companies have been pressing Washington to level the playing field, and the current scrutiny of ASML can be partly understood in this context.
The April meeting between Lutnick and Fouquet covered a range of topics, including ASML’s US investment commitments. Both men described the overall conversation on LinkedIn in positive terms, without mentioning the EUV controversy. The public cordiality masks a deepening tension that is unlikely to be resolved quickly, given the fundamental divergence between ASML’s commercial interests and Washington’s national security priorities.
The broader context is one of accelerating technological decoupling. The US has been systematically tightening restrictions on the export of advanced semiconductor equipment to China since 2022, and the Dutch and Japanese governments have followed suit under pressure from Washington. Each successive tightening has been met with Chinese efforts to develop domestic alternatives, with varying degrees of success. The ASML EUV controversy, whatever its ultimate resolution, underscores that the battle over chipmaking equipment is far from over, and that the integrity of export controls depends not just on legal frameworks but on the willingness and ability of companies and governments to enforce them rigorously.