European leaders are pushing back against the MATCH Act, a US law that would restrict exports of older-generation chipmaking tools to China. ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet noted that China can currently only buy deep ultraviolet lithography machines first shipped a decade ago. The act would now ban these same machines. Europe sees this as an overreach that harms its own semiconductor industry. Tensions are rising as Brussels considers retaliatory measures to protect its tech sovereignty.
This is a good fight. Europe is finally waking up. The US has been calling the shots on chip exports for too long. And what's the target? Machines that are already a decade old. That's not cutting-edge technology. It's yesterday's tools. Banning them doesn't stop China from advancing. It just hurts European companies like ASML that sell them.
I see this as a necessary evolution. The world is multipolar. Tech supply chains should reflect that. Europe has the talent and the industry to stand on its own. By pushing back, it's not picking a fight with the US. It's asserting its own interests. That's healthy. It forces everyone to rethink alliances and dependencies. The future of chips isn't about control—it's about collaboration between equals.