Set aside H100: Huawei wants Chinese hyperscalers to use its new Ascend AI chip instead of Nvidia’s workhorse, but it’ll be difficult
US restrictions on the export of advanced hardware have severely affected the AI ambitions of many Chinese companies, limiting their access to powerful chips needed to train large-scale AI models and process complex calculations. Companies like ByteDance and Alibaba, which rely on high-end processors for their AI operations, have been forced to turn to lower-spec GPUs like Nvidia’s H20 or look for domestic alternatives.
However, not all Chinese companies are equally affected by the US measures. Huawei, which has developed its own AI chipsets such as the Ascend 910B and the Ascend 910C (which the company has just begun testing), has had some success in positioning itself as a domestic alternative to Nvidia.
During his keynote speech at the recent Huawei Connect 2024 event, the company’s vice chairman Eric Xu Zhijun outlined the company’s strategy to build AI systems “that are accessible to every person, home and organization” and announced he plans to invest heavily in AI ecosystem development over the next five years, according to the South China Morning Mail.
Expanding its cloud services
Regarding the US sanctions, Xu admitted: “The reality is that US restrictions on AI chips for China are unlikely to be lifted anytime soon.” However, he also emphasized that these challenges present an opportunity for Huawei to expand its cloud services and offer local alternatives for AI infrastructure.
Huawei’s cloud computing unit has become a key growth area, generating revenue of 55.29 billion yuan ($7.6 billion) in 2023, up 21.9% year-on-year. “Cloud services are the best option for many companies looking to integrate AI into their business,” says Xu. “By offering Ascend and AI model services, we want to give every company real-time access to on-demand AI computing power and enable more efficient model training and inference.”
At the event, Huawei also announced upgrades to its AI stack, collaborations with partners such as China Mobile for autonomous driving networks and plans to develop AI solutions for the automotive sector.