China Indium Phosphide Curb Lifts Wafer Prices 250%; Coherent CEO Seeks License in China; OpenAI Finds Opinion

In early May 2026, Jim Anderson, chief executive officer of U. S. chipmaker Coherent, told investors that the company faced a shortage of indium phosphide. He subsequently joined U. President Donald Trump on a trip to China to seek an export license. Indium phosphide is a compound that converts electricity into laser light and is used for data transmission between chips inside data centers. As artificial intelligence systems scale up, data centers are shifting from copper cabling to optical fiber communications, making indium phosphide a critical material.

China accounts for about 70% of global indium phosphide supply and began restricting exports of the material in February 2025, causing prices to surge sharply. The price of indium phosphide for wafers rose 250% to about $5,000 including tax. Supplier Lumentum has sold out its supply through 2028. AXT, the world's second-largest wafer maker, has most of its production in China and has faced delays in export licenses. During the U. -China trade truce in November 2025, China lifted restrictions on gallium, germanium, and antimony but did not change the indium phosphide ban, which remained in place through June 2026.

On the opinion front, in June 2026 OpenAI published a report saying it had banned two clusters of China-linked accounts. One cluster, named 'Data Center Trend,' posted comments and cartoons claiming data centers raise household electricity bills. The campaign had almost no impact. U. officials have warned about such influence activities. Representative Brett Guthrie has called on the FBI and a Technology Advisory Committee to investigate foreign influence campaigns. Representative Jason Smith said his investigators traced Chinese funding to U. nonprofit organizations and asked the Treasury Department to revoke their tax-exempt status. Several anti-data-center groups, including CODEPINK, The People's Forum, and Tricontinental, have been linked to a funding network connected to Neville Roy Singham, an American businessman based in Shanghai.