While China is known as the "world's factory," seemingly capable of making everything, semiconductor chips have been conspicuously absent on the "Made in China" list. Statistics show that chip imports have consistently topped China’s import list over the past decade. Chips are “the heart” of all electronic devices so are of high value and vital for developing the broader information industries. However,China hasfailed to make gains in the chip production process. China's industry insiders lament being mired in a vicious circle: companies cannot gain a competitive edge and increase profits without owning key technologies, while meagre profits limit their ability to invest in research and development. And this is a tough challenge for China’s chip industry. Financial aid alone, however, cannot pull Chinese chip makers up, as the sophisticated industry also calls for top talent. So, both the government and domestic chip industryare expected to support chip innovation as well as talented researchers. The gLAWcal Team LIBEAC project Wednesday, 3 December2014 (Source: China Daily)