What’s next for the chip industry

Some of the US export control rules will be codified in Japan and the Netherlands. The devil is not out of the ordinary. Lee, who is based in Germany, says there are definitely voices in favor of the Americans. There are people who argue that it would be bad for European interests to follow the Americans and lockstep on this. The CEO of ASML said that his company sacrificed for the export controls.

As time goes on, they may grow bigger. The history of the tech restriction coalitions shows that they are complex to manage and need active management to keep functioning.

Taiwan is in a difficult situation. Its economy is tied to that of China because of their geographic proximity. TSMC sells to Chinese companies and builds factories in China. TSMC was granted a one-year exemption from the export restrictions by the US in October. There is a chance of a military conflict between Beijing and Taipei, but most experts don't think that will happen in the near term.

Taiwanese companies need to be prepared for uncertainties. This doesn't mean they will pull out from all their operations in China, but they might consider investing more in overseas facilities.

Taiwan's chip industry is moving closer to the US and an alliance is solidifying around the American export-control regime. With the US and its allies representing one of those worlds and the other comprising China and the various countries in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Eurasia, and Africa, we will be entering the world of two chips. When building their digital infrastructure, countries that have traditionally relied on China's financial aid and trade deals will probably accept the Chinese standards.

It would take a long time, but it seems like it's inevitable. He says that governments will need to make contingency plans when it happens.

This story is a part of MIT Technology Review’s What’s Next series, where we look across industries, trends, and technologies to give you a first look at the future.

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Mark McCaughrean is the senior advisor for science and exploration at the European Space Agency. The conditions for life to have developed could be found on the icy moons.

McCaughrean says that Jupiter will be able to look for biosignatures on the surface of Europa's ice, which could rain down from the ejected particles into space.

The Euclid telescope, which was switched from a Russian rocket to a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, is scheduled to be launched later in the year. The telescope will look over a third of the sky to look for dark matter and dark energy.

When Psyche takes flight, NASA should launch a science mission of its own. The asteroid 16 Psyche is rich in metal and has never been seen before.

There will be a number of intriguing developments in the years to come. The OSIRIS-REx mission is scheduled to return to Earth in September with pieces of an asteroid which could offer new insight into the structure and formation of the solar system. The start of a 3,000-satellite communications network is what Amazon hopes to start in early 2023. Several new rockets are set to launch, including the United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur rocket, which will carry Astrobotic's moon landers and some of Amazon's satellites. Satellites could be taken into space by both rockets.

There is a large amount of activity. This year is very exciting for me.

This story is a part of MIT Technology Review’s What’s Next series, where we look across industries, trends, and technologies to let you know what to expect in the coming year.