Alibaba, through its semiconductor division T-Head (Ping-Tou-Ge), has announced a new chip designed specifically for AI inference tasks. As reported by The Wall Street Journal on the evening of August 31, 2025, this move is part of Chinas long-term strategy to achieve self-sufficiency in key technologies. The new chip, manufactured by a Chinese contract manufacturer, is intended to be a cost-effective alternative to expensive Nvidia GPUs for running pre-trained AI models. The main goal is to provide Alibaba Cloud and its customers with a powerful and sovereign hardware base that is not dependent on U.S. export restrictions. This announcement demonstrates that China is focusing not only on creating its own foundational models but also on building a complete vertically integrated supply chain—from chip design to manufacturing and application in cloud infrastructure.
Alibaba Unveils New AI Chip to Reduce Reliance on Nvidia
