From the very pro-China Chollima Report's Twitter feed:
The expectation of US sanctions was to block SMIC from getting past 14nm. Bloomberg states the development has also been confirmed by an anonymous source "familiar with the situation". Chinese semiconductor shares all surged on the story being published.
— The Chollima Report (@ChollimaOrg) July 21, 2022
This is a photo of the architecture of the SMIC 7nm chip, which is described as "flawless". This should clear any doubts about it. pic.twitter.com/QRUlk644DB
— The Chollima Report (@ChollimaOrg) July 21, 2022
On the way to 5nm and then they won't need Taiwan for R&D, only for the fabs.
Probably not related, from NBC News:
