August 6, 2026Samsung Electronics and ​SK Hynix are evaluating chipmaking equipment from China’s Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment (AMEC) for possible use at their Chinese factories, reports Reuters citing inside sources. This comes as the South Korean firms hedge against the risk of tighter US export controls. The memory chipmakers began testing AMEC etching equipment about two years ago, when uncertainty was mounting over whether Washington would continue allowing them to import US chipmaking tools into China, two of the sources said. While the evaluations have yet to result in decisions on wider deployment, they offer the Shanghai-based company a ​rare chance to secure validation from some of the world’s leading chipmakers. More broadly, the trials underscore a paradox at the heart of US ⁠technology controls: measures designed to constrain Beijing’s semiconductor ambitions are creating opportunities for Chinese rivals to gain a foothold in foreign-owned facilities operating in China.