China Mobile Announces Procurement for Wafer Foundry Services: Moving Beyond Traditional Carrier Roles to Chip Manufacturing

On September 8, 2025, China Mobile released an announcement titled “Procurement Project for Shortlisted Wafer Foundry Services – Qualification Pre-Review Announcement”.

China Mobile is procuring wafer foundry services, indicating a deeper industrial layout!

• This project is: Wafer Foundry Services Shortlist Procurement Project

• The purchaser is: Xincheng Technology Co., Ltd.

The purchaser has been relatively less visible in the public eye, Xincheng is a subsidiary of China Mobile IoT Company:

In terms of equity structure, China Mobile holds over 65%.

Xincheng Technology Co., Ltd. mainly focuses on IoT-related chips. This year, at the MWC 25 in Barcelona in March, the China Mobile Xincheng chip products,5G-A cellular passive IoT chips,were showcased at the conference and were quite impressive:

• The procurement details are as follows,the procurement scopeincludes engineering batch wafers, mass production product wafers, masks, test probes, CP testing machine time, etc., covering the key processes of chip manufacturing from design to mass production..
• This procurement also vaguely reveals a strategic layout: by participating in the entire process, mastering the core capabilities of chip production.

• Procurement scale: 10,000 units

The scale is not very large. From public information, this should be China Mobile’s first procurement of wafer foundry services.

Previously, China Mobile has directly procured chips multiple times, especially terminal device chips, influencing the industry through its massive procurement demands.

This time, they are directly involved in chip manufacturing, indicating a deep strategic layout that reaches the core:

• More stable equipment supply. By directly participating in the wafer foundry process, they reduce reliance on external suppliers, enhance control over chip supply, and improve the resilience of the supply chain.

• Innovation without needing to heed equipment suppliers. Self-research and production of chips and components will provide foundational support for China Mobile’s technological innovations in 5G communication, smart terminals, and the Internet of Vehicles.
• Reaching the core of the industrial ecosystem. Collaboration with wafer foundry manufacturers helps integrate upstream and downstream resources, promoting collaborative innovation in the domestic semiconductor ecosystem, forming a closed loop of “technology-manufacturing-application”.

Do you feel that China Mobile is becoming less like a traditional “carrier”?

The role of a “carrier” generally emphasizes demand-driven approaches,as China Mobile transitions from “using chips” to “making chips”, the depth of its industrial chain layout is quietly changing the industry landscape. This is worth continuous attention!