Huawei unveils a extended plan for AI accelerator development, asserting the creation of the planet's most powerful compute clusters
Huawei Unveils Ambitious AI Processor Roadmap
Huawei, the Chinese tech giant, has announced a series of new AI processors that it plans to release over the next few years. The company's latest development, the Ascend 950PR and Ascend 950DT, are set to hit the market in the first and fourth quarters of 2026 respectively.
The Ascend 950PR, set for release in the first quarter of 2026, promises a performance of one petaflop with 8-bit floating-point (FP8) computation units. The Ascend 950DT, on the other hand, will have a performance of two petaflops of FP4 and will include 144GB of 4 TB/s memory.
Huawei's existing AI accelerators have faced criticism for not always performing brilliantly or matching claims of equivalency to Nvidia and AMD stock parts. However, the company is hopeful that the Ascend 950DT will mark a significant improvement in performance.
In addition to the new processors, Huawei has also announced a pair of 'SuperPoD' rigs that can run 8,192 and 15,488 Ascend units apiece. These 'superclusters' can combine multiple SuperPoDs and scale to 500,000 and 'over one million' Ascend parts.
The Ascend 960, scheduled for release in late 2027, will have 288GB of 9.6TB/s memory, while the Ascend 970, due in late 2028, will boast memory speeds of 14.4 TB/s.
China's tech export playbook often involves developing strong products that undercut established rivals on price. In the case of AI hardware, this is particularly relevant as Nvidia and AMD stock products are terrifyingly expensive in developing nations. Beijing now targets developing nations where price matters, scrutiny may be lighter, and AI hardware from Nvidia and AMD is expensive.
China has forbidden local companies from purchasing American accelerators, which has further boosted Huawei's domestic development of AI technology. If Tencent Cloud deploys Huawei's clusters outside China, Huawei's and other Middle Kingdom firms' accelerators could become available to organizations around the world.
It is important to note that Huawei's and ZTE's telecoms kit have been a subject of close examination by national security organizations in the past. However, Huawei's AI processors are a testament to the company's commitment to pushing the boundaries of technology and AI development.
Tencent Cloud's overseas client base has doubled since last year, indicating a growing demand for affordable and high-performance AI hardware in the global market. With Huawei's ambitious roadmap, the company is poised to meet this demand and establish itself as a major player in the global AI market.
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