Howard Liu
Reporter, Tech
Howard Liu is a Beijing-based technology and business reporter at the South China Morning Post, covering the semiconductor industry, AI and global tech supply chains. Previously at Caixin Media, he focused on China’s AI, semiconductor and cloud computing sectors. A graduate of Columbia University, he enjoys running, swimming and hiking.
Howard Liu is a Beijing-based technology and business reporter at the South China Morning Post, covering the semiconductor industry, AI and global tech supply chains. Previously at Caixin Media, he focused on China’s AI, semiconductor and cloud computing sectors. A graduate of Columbia University, he enjoys running, swimming and hiking.
Areas of Expertise:
AI, semiconductorLanguages Spoken:
English, Mandarin
The firm’s Ascend chips are ahead of Nvidia in domestic market, Huawei’s Eric Xu Zhijun says.
The Chinese tech giant is leveraging its UnifiedBus technology to link hundreds or thousands of chips into single computing unit.
Company says ‘performance-doubling’ Ascend 960DT training chip to debut in first quarter, followed by 960PR inference chip in third quarter.
Its SuperPoD will face off against offerings by US rivals in the global computing power arena, including Nvidia’s NVL system.
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The devices are emerging as central to artificial intelligence race, and China’s suppliers hold key market position.
Company claims it has the industry’s first 7.2-terabit-per-second NPO module, as firms race to set next-generation AI infrastructure standards.
The nation’s intelligent computing capacity hit 2,185 eflops at the end of June, up 177 per cent from a year earlier, according to MIIT.
New smartphone processor is a crucial test of the firm’s attempt to route around US-led curbs on the most advanced chipmaking technology.
Lower costs and faster growth rates let China’s AI firms narrow the divide, raising the question: does the spending gap still matter?
A rapid R&D drive is powering the firm’s transition beyond its core business.
Industry leaders caution that the semiconductor equipment sector must now transition from technical viability to commercial reliability.
China’s leading DRAM chipmaker outperforms its own forecasts in its first financial results since a blockbuster Shanghai listing.
AI chipmaker upbeat on global demand, saying it expects revenue to grow by about 70 per cent in 2028 financial year.
The increase will be driven by aggressive capacity expansion at SMIC, China’s largest contract chipmaker, as well as improving yields.
IPO funds to fuel YMTC parent CCSH’s expansion, with nearly US$5 billion set aside to boost chipmaking capacity and accelerate R&D.
Event highlights robots’ remaining weaknesses, including balance issues, limited autonomy and battery constraints, while underscoring need for faster networks.
The industry is seeing a shift from flashy demonstrations, like kickboxing and dancing, to real-world deployment.
While Chinese robotics companies have been quick to capture attention through viral trends and flashy stunts, they are under increasing pressure to deliver practical commercial applications.
China’s robots have won global attention with a string of viral stunts. But firms now face growing pressure to generate real-world returns.
Beyond GPUs and memory chips, the rapid AI buildout is sparking demand for indium phosphide, a substrate used to power next-generation optical transmission.
Shares jump 12 per cent to a record as bullish signals from SanDisk reinforce expectations that AI-driven memory demand will keep supplies tight.
China’s largest foundry says shortages are spreading to mature-node chips, with some AI-driven demand visible through the end of 2027.
The chipmaker captured a larger proportion of bit shipments, but still ranks fifth by revenue due to heavier exposure to lower-value products.
Guangzhou-based SOI Micro is developing a low-power logic process aimed at easing reliance on overseas technology while strengthening domestic chip capabilities.
The South Korean chipmaker wants to pivot towards the high-margin AI memory sector, but analysts warn any sale would face valuation hurdles.
AI demand is keeping supplies tight, but slower pricing momentum and expansion by CXMT and YMTC are raising questions over how long boom can last.
Chipmaker’s inclusion in main global index system set to spur passive demand and spotlight China’s growing semiconductor clout: analysts.
The Chinese AI chip developer plans a listing in Hong Kong to deepen its ‘international strategic footprint’.
While global attention focuses on the most advanced bottlenecks, domestic equipment makers are quietly closing the gap in other essential technologies.
