Chinese semiconductor engineer Xu Zhenpeng says he left US to find freedom

Leading chipmaking engineer Xu Zhenpeng said the United States no longer offered the freedom that researchers once expected – a key reason for his decision to continue his work in China.

Xu, who joined Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) as a tenure-track assistant professor in January, left behind a team leadership role at Atomic Semi, a California start-up with high-profile backers that included OpenAI’s venture fund.

Before his departure, Xu led a team that was developing a new kind of chipmaking machine using 3D-printed parts that would be smaller, faster and cheaper than today’s large, costly production equipment.

“In my previous role in the semiconductor sector in the US, increasingly strict policies and corporate compliance requirements limited my international mobility, which became a constraint on sustained research development,” he told the South China Morning Post in an email last week.

Xu said his decision to return to China was motivated by long-term academic goals and a desire for a more independent research environment. “Meanwhile, China’s advanced manufacturing research ecosystem is evolving rapidly,” he added.

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While Xu did not specify which corporate compliance rules he was referring to, such policies are typically designed to ensure companies follow government restrictions.

South China Morning Post