HUAWEI’s New Ascend 910C AI Chip Set To Battle NVIDIA’s in China
Chinese tech giant HUAWEI is preparing to ramp up its competition with US chipmaker Nvidia. The company plans to introduce a new artificial intelligence (AI) chip. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, HUAWEI’s upcoming Ascend 910C processor is currently in the testing phase. Major Chinese internet and telecom companies are involved in this testing.
The new chip is positioned as a direct competitor to NVIDIA’s H100. NVIDIA’s H100 is a high-performance AI chip that has been instrumental in powering advancements in AI across various industries. However, US sanctions have restricted NVIDIA from selling its most advanced chips to China. This has created a significant opportunity for domestic chipmakers like HUAWEI.
HUAWEI demonstrates its resilience despite stringent US export controls by developing a chip comparable to the H100. The Ascend 910C is expected to ship as early as October this year. Initial orders are estimated to surpass 70,000 chips, valued at approximately USD 2 billion.
Key Chinese tech players, including TikTok parent company ByteDance, search engine giant Baidu, and telecommunications behemoth China Mobile, are among the potential customers for the new HUAWEI chip. Moreover, this development highlights the growing importance of domestic chip capabilities for China’s tech industry as it navigates geopolitical tensions and seeks to reduce reliance on foreign technology. Consequently, the emphasis on self-sufficiency in technology becomes even more pronounced.
While the full potential of HUAWEI’s Ascend 910C remains to be seen, its introduction marks a significant step in China’s efforts to build a robust and independent semiconductor ecosystem.
