(Bloomberg) — ASML Holding NV, the maker of the world’s most advanced chip machines, was hit by an IT outage on Friday that affected its facilities around the world.
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The disruption started on Friday morning and was resolved later in the afternoon, an ASML spokesperson said by telephone. The incident forced some employees to work remotely, and Eindhovens Dagblad reported that the company’s cleanrooms, offices, customer support departments and communications with suppliers were affected.
The company says it is investigating the cause of the malfunction.
ASML is a crucial part of the global semiconductor supply chain and as a result is continually caught in the middle of the escalating battle between the US and China over chip market dominance. It has a monopoly on the production of machines that companies such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Samsung Electronics Co. helping produce the most advanced chips that power everything from Apple Inc.’s smartphones. to Nvidia Corp.’s AI accelerators.
Last month, the company accidentally published its financial report a day ahead of schedule due to a “technical error.” The premature publication compounded the weak results, sending both the company’s shares and those of chip companies worldwide tumbling.
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