On December 19, 2025, reports confirmed China successfully built a prototype Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machine. This technology is critical for advanced semiconductor chips, a sector ASML has exclusively controlled.
The prototype was completed in early 2025 at a high-security lab in Shenzhen and is currently undergoing testing. This breakthrough stems from a major state-backed initiative designed to overcome US-led restrictions on chipmaking technology.
The project, which allegedly involved former ASML engineers, is being compared to China's 'Manhattan Project' due to its national importance.
Beijing targets 2028 for producing chips using the new machine, though sources suggest 2030 is a more realistic timeline. This development marks a substantial step in China’s quest for semiconductor self-sufficiency and poses a direct challenge to ASML’s long-held technological monopoly in the EUV space. No immediate market reaction analysis was available.