Good links for sure...
However may i refer you here. https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/havelock-alcheminer-scrypt-asic-565415
This is well after the FPGA prototype had been finished. Which means that alcheminer white labeled the MAT gear. This is a VERY VERY common practice in tech period.
http://www.topbitcoinmininghardware.com/war-machine-gaw-miners/
We all know that is a zues miner right?
Another thing to keep in mind. Other companies do tape outs...
Let me give you an example...
Remember this thing? http://bitmine.ch/coincraft-28nm-asic/
This was done by a company called Innosilicon. I have visited Innosilicon in china personally. And the owners are now good friends of mine. However, Innosilicon also made their own chip... called the A1. In fact it is the same chip. Also, they made something called a2. Which is a beast mode scrypt miner. But regardless who cares.
So my question to you is how does this matter in anyway? Regardless on who made the chipset. I am looking at this purely from an objective standpoint. Does it matter who is using whose stuff? I mean if innosilicon would give me free chips and let me laser over it and put my face on it i would. Because let's be honest... a chip with my face on it would be BITCHIN!... lol
It really does matter because both companies are claiming to have designed/manufactured the hardware.
As I'm sure you know, it takes millions of dollars to design and manufacture 28nm hardware (alcheminer says $4million). You can't just pretend to have that much skin in the game and take preorders based on the illusion that you need it for NRE/production costs.
The coincraft case is special because Bitmine did actually commission innosilicon to make their chip, they just didn't have an exclusivity agreement which screwed them over.
Companies are free to rebrand/resell hardware as long as they are honest about it.
From the looks of it, MAT charged/is still charging way more than what alcheminer is charging so they could basically just dropship the hardware for a massive profit.