Huawei’s New AI Chip Attracts Orders from ByteDance and Alibaba

• The 950PR chip is more compatible with Nvidia's CUDA software system and offers better response speeds, addressing adoption barriers that limited uptake of Huawei's previous Ascend 910C chip among major Chinese tech firms
• Huawei plans to ship around 750,000 950PR chips this year, with samples sent to customers in January and mass production starting in April, priced at 50,000 yuan ($6,900) for the standard version and 70,000 yuan for the premium HBM memory version
• The chip is designed to excel at AI inference workloads rather than raw computing power, aligning with China's shift from AI model development to real-world deployment as Nvidia faces ongoing U.S. export restrictions in the Chinese market

Summary: Huawei's New AI Chip Attracts Orders from ByteDance and Alibaba

Key Development:

Huawei's new 950PR AI chip has successfully completed customer testing and secured planned orders from major Chinese tech companies ByteDance and Alibaba, marking a significant breakthrough for the Shenzhen-based firm in challenging Nvidia's dominance in China's AI chip market.

Technical Specifications:

• Standard 950PR model priced at approximately 50,000 yuan ($6,900) per card
• Premium version with HBM memory priced at 70,000 yuan
• Planned production: 750,000 units in 2025
• Samples distributed in January; mass production begins next month
• Full shipments expected in second half of 2025

Strategic Advantages:

The 950PR addresses previous adoption barriers by offering enhanced compatibility with Nvidia's CUDA software system and improved response speeds. Unlike Huawei's proprietary CANN system used in the current Ascend 910C flagship chip, the new chip enables easier migration for developers accustomed to Nvidia's platform. While raw computing power shows minimal improvement over the 910C, the chip excels at AI inference workloads—running trained models for real-world applications.

Market Context:

This development comes as Nvidia faces significant restrictions in China, with many AI chips banned by Washington over military technology concerns. Though the Trump administration approved sales of Nvidia's more powerful H200 chips with conditions, Chinese regulatory approval timing remains uncertain.

Industry Impact:

Demand for AI inference computing is surging in China as the sector pivots from model development to deployment, driven by rapid adoption of open-source AI agents. Huawei's improved compatibility and competitive pricing position the 950PR to capture market share from restricted Nvidia products among major Chinese technology companies.