China is still years behind the U.S. despite Huawei's breakthrough chips, Raimondo tells '60 Minutes'

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on Sunday downplayed Huawei Technologies' latest microchip breakthrough, arguing that the U.S. remains far ahead of China in the critical technology.

The comments, which were delivered on CBS News' "60 Minutes," align with her stance that the Biden administration's restrictions on chip sales to China are working, despite an advanced made-in-China chip surfacing in a Huawei phone last year.

"It's years behind what we have in the United States. We have the most sophisticated semiconductors in the world. China doesn't. We've out-innovated China," Raimondo said during the interview, which aired Sunday evening in the U.S.

U.S.-blacklisted Huawei released the Mate 60 Pro smartphone in August, which sported a 5G-capable chip — a feat thought to have been made difficult by a series of U.S. export controls in late 2022. The phone launched while Raimondo was on a visit to China.

Ahead of the trip, it was reported that Chinese-linked hackers accessed Raimondo's email.

"I have their attention, clearly," she said, adding that the U.S. would continue to pursue actions to protect U.S. national security and businesses.  

According to a senior Commerce Department official, Huawei's chipmaking partner SMIC "potentially" violated U.S. law by providing an advanced chip to the Chinese phone maker. 

Since the release of the Mate 60 Pro, the U.S. has further tightened restrictions on sales of advanced semiconductor tech to China. 

Chinese officials have repeatedly denounced the policies, which require licenses for any company worldwide to sell products with advanced U.S.-designed chip technology to countries seen as adversaries.

Many U.S. chip companies, which largely rely on China for business, have also expressed