Huawei chips are one generation behind U.S. but firm finding workarounds, CEO says

Huawei Technologies' chips are one generation behind those of U.S. peers but the firm is finding ways to amended show done methods specified arsenic clump computing, Chinese authorities media quoted CEO Ren Zhengfei arsenic saying connected Tuesday.

The chipmaker invests 180 cardinal yuan ($25.07 billion) successful probe annually and sees committedness successful compound chips — chips made from aggregate elements — Ren said successful an interrogation with the People's Daily paper of the governing Communist Party.

There is "no request to interest astir the spot problem", Ren said, addressing concerns stemming from U.S. export controls.

The article, published connected the beforehand leafage of the newspaper, comes arsenic apical U.S. and Chinese officials are acceptable to resume commercialized talks for a 2nd time successful London, wherever topics specified arsenic U.S. tech restrictions connected China are expected to beryllium discussed.

Since 2019, a slew of U.S. export curbs, aimed astatine curbing China's technological and subject advancements, person restricted Huawei and different Chinese firms from accessing high-end chips and the instrumentality needed to nutrient them from abroad.

Ren's comments are the archetypal ever from him or Huawei about the company's precocious chipmaking efforts, which person go a flashpoint successful U.S.-China tensions.

Huawei is just one of galore Chinese chipmakers, Ren said successful the interview, adding: "The United States has exaggerated Huawei's achievements. Huawei is not that great. We person to enactment hard to scope their evaluation."

"Our azygous spot is still behind the U.S. by a generation. We use mathematics to supplement physics, non-Moore's instrumentality to supplement Moore's instrumentality and clump computing to supplement single chips and the results tin besides execute applicable conditions. Software is not a bottleneck for us," helium said.

Cluster computing is erstwhile aggregate computers enactment together. Moore's instrumentality refers to the velocity of spot advancement.

Huawei's Ascend bid of AI chips competes successful China with offerings from Nvidia, the planetary person successful AI chips.

The U.S. Commerce Department past period said the use of Ascend chips would beryllium a usurpation of export controls.

Nvidia's AI chips are much almighty than Huawei's, but the institution has been barred by Washington from selling its astir sophisticated chips to China, causing it to suffer important marketplace stock to Huawei.

In April, Huawei launched "AI CloudMatrix 384", a strategy that links 384 Ascend 910C chips in a clump that companies can use to bid AI models, which has been described by analysts arsenic capable to outperform Nvidia's GB200 NVL72 strategy connected immoderate metrics.

Dylan Patel, laminitis of semiconductor probe radical SemiAnalysis, said successful an nonfiction that period that it meant that Huawei and China present had AI strategy capabilities that could bushed Nvidia.

Nvidia and the U.S. Commerce Department did not instantly respond to a petition for remark connected Ren's remarks.

Ren besides said astir a 3rd of Huawei's yearly probe spending went to theoretical research, portion the remainder was spent connected merchandise probe and development.

"Without theory, determination volition beryllium nary breakthroughs, and we volition not drawback up with the United States."