Huawei Unveils AI Infrastructure to Challenge Nvidia Amid China Chip Ban

Huawei Unveils AI Infrastructure to Compete with Nvidia Amid China Ban SHENZHEN, CHINA - SEPTEMBER 16, 2022 - Chinese tech giant Huawei announced a new AI infrastructure at its Huawei Connect conference on Thursday, aiming to boost compute power and compete with rival chipmaker Nvidia. The move comes as China banned domestic tech companies from buying Nvidia's hardware, including servers specifically designed for the Chinese market. Huawei's SuperPoD Interconnect technology can link up to 15,000 graphics cards, including its Ascend AI chips, to increase compute power. This technology is seen as a competitor to Nvidia's NVLink infrastructure, which facilitates high-speed communication between AI chips. Huawei's AI chips are less powerful than Nvidia's, but clustering them together will give users access to more compute power needed for training and scaling AI systems. "We're excited to introduce SuperPoD Interconnect, a game-changer in the field of AI computing," said an Huawei spokesperson. "This technology will enable our customers to tackle complex AI workloads with unprecedented speed and efficiency." The announcement comes as China's ban on Nvidia hardware takes effect. The ban prohibits domestic tech companies from buying Nvidia's RTX Pro 600D servers, which are specifically designed for the Chinese market. Nvidia's dominance in the semiconductor industry has made it a target for competitors like Huawei. While Nvidia's chips are more powerful than Huawei's, the company's ability to cluster its AI chips together will give users access to more compute power. "This is a significant development for Huawei and the broader AI ecosystem," said an analyst at a leading tech research firm. "By providing a high-performance computing solution, Huawei can better compete with Nvidia and other semiconductor leaders." Huawei's new AI infrastructure has implications beyond the Chinese market. As global demand for AI computing continues to grow, companies like Huawei will need to innovate and adapt to stay competitive. The future of AI computing is expected to be shaped by advancements in technologies like SuperPoD Interconnect. With this technology, users can scale their AI systems more efficiently, enabling applications such as deep learning, natural language processing, and computer vision. As the tech industry continues to evolve, Huawei's new AI infrastructure will play a crucial role in shaping the future of computing. *Reporting by Techcrunch.*