[News] China’s “Big Fund III” Invested RMB 450 Million in Semiconductor Equipment

On September 12, Piotech announced a series of filings disclosing that its majority-owned subsidiary, Piotech Jianke, plans to raise up to CNY 1.0395 billion at a pre-investment valuation of RMB 2.5 billion. Among the investors, Guotou Jixin (Beijing) Equity Investment Fund (Limited Partnership) — hereafter “Guotou Jixin” — is committing up to CNY 450 million.

Corporate registry data shows that Guotou Jixin was founded in December 2024, with a capital base of RMB 71 billion. Notably, 99.9% of its funding comes from the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund Phase III, better known as “Big Fund III.” Industry sources confirmed that this was the first publicly disclosed project since Big Fund III was launched.

In the global semiconductor equipment market, foreign players remain dominant, particularly in advanced manufacturing tools, leaving China at a disadvantage. With the traditional 2D scaling roadmap facing bottlenecks, China must explore new approaches to drive performance gains. 3D integration — which increases chip density and performance through vertical stacking rather than planar scaling — is seen as a breakthrough path to “leapfrog” global competition.

Piotech’s core business centers on the R&D, manufacturing, and sales of thin-film deposition equipment. Alongside lithography and etching tools, deposition equipment is one of the three pillars of chipmaking, directly determining the advancement of semiconductor processes. Piotech’s product portfolio covers PECVD, ALD, SACVD, HDPCVD, and other deposition tools, which are already widely deployed in domestic logic and memory fabs. As early as 2014, Big Fund Phase I identified Piotech as a key equipment investment target, providing critical support during its formative years.

Piotech Jianke, the subsidiary, is strategically focused on R&D and commercialization of 3D integration equipment. Thin-film deposition sits at the core of semiconductor manufacturing, while 3D integration belongs to the advanced packaging domain. The two technologies are inherently synergistic, and Piotech’s deep expertise in deposition has laid a solid foundation for its entry into 3D integration.

Currently, Piotech Jianke remains in an early stage of development. In the first half of 2025, it generated just CNY 1.1455 million in revenue, while posting a net loss of CNY 37.4676 million. The fresh capital infusion aims to accelerate its progress in 3D integration equipment.

Big Fund III’s initial investment in Piotech Jianke marks another major strategic shift for China’s national semiconductor fund, following Phases I and II. Industry data indicates that Big Fund Phase I, during the early stages of China’s semiconductor push, allocated 60–70% of its capital to chip manufacturing, while spending far less on upstream equipment and materials — each accounting for only about 1%.

Now, Big Fund III appears to be pivoting from a “broad-based” to a “selective” investment approach, with a clear focus on “low self-sufficiency segments.” By targeting 3D integration equipment — widely regarded as a critical weakness in China’s chip manufacturing ecosystem — the fund is signaling its sharpened priorities.

It is also worth noting that several China’s domestic players are actively expanding into advanced 3D packaging beyond Piotech Jianke. Leading OSAT firms such as JCET, Tongfu Microelectronics, and HT-Tech have all made significant progress, establishing partnerships with top-tier global and domestic customers. JCET has developed its XDFOI technology, Tongfu offers VISionS, and HT-Tech has 3D Matrix — all of which are widely applied in high-performance computing and memory. In the niche of domestic hybrid bonding equipment, Piotech is joined by firms like MaxWell and King Semi, who are also developing relevant technologies.

(Photo credit: FREEPIK)