Huawei is rumored to be developing a powerful new AI processor-the Ascend 910D-that could potentially challenge NVIDIA’s H100 GPU, which debuted back in 2022.
This rumored chip might feature a four-die setup, doubling the die count of the current Ascend 910C model, and boosting its performance significantly.
Social media sources claim Huawei has access to around two million chip dies, which are crucial for building multi-die AI processors. Though Huawei struggles with U.S. sanctions limiting access to cutting-edge chipmaking tech, it reportedly stockpiled advanced dies before restrictions tightened. These dies are being used to power new chip designs despite not being fabricated with the latest lithography equipment.
The upcoming 910D chip may be Huawei’s answer to NVIDIA’s AI dominance, especially given that U.S. sanctions ban the sale of H100s and newer models to China. Early reports suggest that Huawei could start shipping the Ascend 910D as early as this quarter or possibly by Q2 2026.
However, there’s a catch-inefficiencies in packaging could drastically reduce the number of usable chips. While Huawei might technically hold 1.5 million usable dies, the final production yield of fully functional 910D units might end up being fewer than 400,000 units.
Adding fuel to the fire, sources also hint at the development of a successor, the Ascend 920. This future chip would default to a two-die configuration and could operate alongside NVIDIA GPUs using a GPGPU framework. If all goes to plan, limited shipments of the 920 could begin by 2027, showing Huawei’s long-term ambitions in the AI hardware race.
While Huawei’s tech is still catching up to NVIDIA’s latest Blackwell chips, the rumored developments indicate the Chinese tech giant is far from giving up in the global AI chip war.