Huawei Accelerates Mass Production of Ascend 910C AI Chip Amid U.S. Export Restrictions

• Ascend 910C Performance:
  • Combines two 910B processors using advanced packaging techniques, achieving performance on par with Nvidia’s H100.
  • Enhancements include double the computing power and memory of the 910B, with improved support for diverse AI workloads.
• Production and Deployment:
  • Shipments have already begun to select Chinese clients; full-scale mass shipment expected as early as May 2025.
  • Huawei began distributing 910C samples and accepting orders in late 2024.
• Manufacturing Details:
  • Chips manufactured by SMIC using N+2 7nm process; yield rate remains low (~20%), far below the commercial viability threshold (~70%).
  • Some 910C GPUs allegedly incorporate TSMC-made chips originally intended for Sophgo, triggering a U.S. Commerce Department investigation.
  • TSMC denies current supply to Huawei since September 2020 and claims regulatory compliance.
• Strategic Timing:
  • Huawei’s move aligns with the latest U.S. ban on Nvidia’s H20 chip, reinforcing its push to serve Chinese AI developers.
  • The 910C’s architecture represents an incremental evolution rather than a breakthrough, but it fills a critical hardware gap.
• Market Impact:
  • With Nvidia’s top-tier AI chips (H100, H20, B200) blocked from China, Huawei’s 910C is becoming the go-to GPU for domestic model training and inference deployment.
  • Chinese GPU startups like Moore Threads and Iluvatar CoreX also stand to gain as U.S. restrictions intensify.

Why This Matters:

Huawei’s Ascend 910C rollout is a major milestone in China’s response to U.S. technology sanctions. It underscores a shift toward domestic self-reliance in AI infrastructure and signals Huawei’s strategic positioning as the default supplier for China’s AI sector amid geopolitical tech decoupling.