Suzhou Zhicai Technology has successfully developed a high-purity, high-density magnesium oxide sputtering target measuring 6 inches, which meets the requirements for manufacturing Magnetic Random-Access Memory (MRAM) magnetic tunnel junctions. This target boasts a purity of 4N and a density exceeding 99.8 percent, with grain uniformity reaching an international leading level, surpassing major Japanese competitors who typically report densities slightly above 99.7 percent.
This breakthrough closes the final segment of the MRAM material supply chain that was previously controlled by foreign companies, as all other metallic magnetic targets were already supplied domestically.
MRAM, or Magnetoresistive Random-Access Memory, utilizes the electron spin degree of freedom to combine speeds close to DRAM with non-volatility comparable to NAND class and a read latency approximately one thousand times smaller than NAND. Due to its design, the technology is radiation-tolerant, eliminating the need for separate single-event error correction, making it dominant in data storage systems for spacecraft, military satellites, and missile guidance systems.
As logic nodes shrink below 28 nanometers, embedded MRAM is beginning to displace embedded flash memory as the leading choice for non-volatile memory in next-generation automotive microcontrollers and peripheral AI controllers.
The low-end market is accelerating synchronously. Samsung positions MRAM alongside DRAM and high-speed memory as a strategic element, while TSMC aims for MRAM production readiness using a 5-nanometer process node by 2027. In March 2025, NXP released the FinFET S32K5 automotive microcontroller with embedded MRAM, and Everspin introduced its MRAM UNISYST with densities ranging from 128 megabits to 2 gigabits and a read bandwidth of 400 megabytes per second.
According to Fortune Business Insights estimates, the global MRAM chip market was valued at $4.49 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $86.78 billion by 2034, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate of 38.97 percent.
China's MRAM ecosystem has reached a critical point for mass production. GigaDevice supplies STT-MRAM samples certified for automotive and industrial clients. Zhizhen Storage has integrated SOT-MRAM chips into low-altitude drone flight control systems. A specialized 8-inch MRAM production line operates in Qingdao, and Hanxu Technology has completed the development of an 8-nanometer embedded MRAM chip for AI. With the qualification of the MgO target from Suzhou Zhicai, China's MRAM pilot lines have achieved fully domestic raw material supply at the upper level, ending the dual pressure of restrictions previously placed on Chinese MRAM development institutions.
Suzhou Zhicai was founded by employees returning under China's national talent attraction program, in collaboration with leading oxide target researchers. The company is already the sole domestic supplier and one of three globally possessing a complete solution for REBCO high-temperature superconducting targets, exporting in small batches. The MRAM-MgO target represents the company's second major breakthrough in oxide targets and confirms its dual strategy covering high-temperature superconductors and key semiconductor chip materials.
China's state broadcaster unveiled a package of technological achievements presented at the end of summer 2026. Each of these achievements addresses production limitations that the country has faced for many years. This complex covers heavy industry, astronomy, semiconductors, displays, energy, and space.
The faster pace of development is also a defensive move. In several areas where China has managed to close the gap, including high-class radio observation receivers, ultra-thin precision strip steel, and large AMOLED evaporators, foreign suppliers have been tightening export controls over the past two years. The presence of domestic production in each category changes the negotiation dynamics in subsequent licensing rounds. Furthermore, domestic supply ensures a more predictable cost curve for Chinese system integrators, as several end markets are scaling simultaneously, such as next-generation electric vehicles, premium consumer electronics, and space-to-ground communication equipment.
Most notable was the appearance of a new high-quality grade of steel, produced in sheets thinner than A4 paper. Previously, only a few foreign metallurgical plants held a monopoly on thickness and surface quality. Within the same announcement, an upgrade to the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), China's flagship radio telescope located in Guizhou, was presented. Operators reported that this upgrade significantly enhances the antenna's ability to capture weak cosmic signals—a capability previously available to fewer than three radio observatories worldwide.
Two-component experimental satellites carrying AI-based payloads were launched from the Dunfeng commercial space innovation center test site. These spacecraft are designed to perform most data filtering, recognition, and output in orbit, transmitting actionable responses instead of raw images. China is among the first countries to place a satellite-to-satellite computing cluster in orbit and demonstrate that orbital computing can be more extensive than just a single-satellite demonstration.
Other elements included in the broadcast feature a domestic replacement for a niche semiconductor material previously imported; a new generation of large AMOLED display panels; a low-cost, high-density sodium-ion battery cell; a network of high-temperature superconducting cables; and progress in the development of a fourth-generation reactor.
The totality of these announcements indicates an industrial policy that consistently accumulates small victories across multiple sectors simultaneously, rather than betting solely on a few flagship industries. This pattern is as significant as the individual products themselves.
