Alibaba Develops New AI Chip Amid U.S. Export Restrictions

August 30, 2025
Alibaba is testing a new AI chip as part of China's efforts to reduce reliance on U.S. technology, following tightened export restrictions on Nvidia's H20 chip.

Alibaba Group is testing a new artificial intelligence chip designed to reduce China's reliance on U.S. technology. This development comes in response to tightened U.S. export restrictions on Nvidia's H20 chip, which has prompted Chinese tech firms to accelerate the creation of domestic alternatives.

The new chip, developed in-house by Alibaba, is built to handle a broader range of AI inference tasks compared to its predecessors. Unlike previous processors that relied on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, this chip is fabricated by a Chinese company, aligning with Beijing's push for self-sufficiency in technology.

The introduction of this chip is timely for Alibaba, which reported a 26% revenue increase in its cloud computing unit for the April-June quarter. The demand for AI infrastructure has been a significant driver, making a homegrown processor both a strategic hedge and a potential boost to its cloud services business.

As the largest cloud provider in China, Alibaba's move to develop its own chip could mark a significant step in China's efforts to secure its AI future independently. This initiative reflects a broader industry trend in China, where companies are engineering substitutes for foreign processors amid ongoing trade tensions and regulatory challenges.

We hope you enjoyed this article.

Consider subscribing to one of our newsletters like Silicon Brief or Daily AI Brief.

Also, consider following us on social media:

AI Chips & Datacenters AI Brief AI Brief (X)

More from: Data Centers

08/30
Nvidia's Revenue Heavily Influenced by Two Key Customers
08/30
Novacore Innovations Launches India's First GPU Cloud with NVIDIA Blackwell
08/29
Data Center Colocation Market Set for Significant Growth by 2032
08/28
Aion Silicon Joins Intel Foundry Accelerator Value Chain Alliance
08/27
Meta Plans $50 Billion AI Data Center in Louisiana

Subscribe to Silicon Brief

Weekly coverage of AI hardware developments including chips, GPUs, cloud platforms, and data center technology.

AI Token Webinar

Whitepaper

Stanford HAI’s 2025 AI Index Reveals Record Growth in AI Capabilities, Investment, and Regulation

The 2025 AI Index by Stanford HAI provides a comprehensive overview of the global state of artificial intelligence, highlighting significant advancements in AI capabilities, investment, and regulation. The report details improvements in AI performance, increased adoption in various sectors, and the growing global optimism towards AI, despite ongoing challenges in reasoning and trust. It serves as a critical resource for policymakers, researchers, and industry leaders to understand AI's rapid evolution and its implications.

Read more

You May Also Like