China’s recent decision to ban purchases from US semiconductor firm Micron Technology has heightened the geopolitical standoff between the United States and China. This move, framed as a response to a failed Chinese network security review, underscores Beijing and Washington’s appetite for protectionism and statist intervention in their respective semiconductor industries. At the expense of access to their respective markets, both countries are likely to continue their support for a state-led industrial policy for domestic semiconductors. Regardless of the outcome of the 2024 US presidential election, America’s semiconductor industry has joined the likes of the aerospace and defense sectors in their level of support from the federal government, with protection at home and promotion abroad. China’s ban on Micron is just the first instance of a heightened trade war that threatens to evolve far beyond tariffs.