Overview

• China’s chipmakers plan to triple national AI accelerator production in 2026, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
• A dedicated facility to make Huawei-focused AI chips is expected to start production by late 2025, with two additional plants slated for 2026, the FT reported.
• The plants are described as designed to support Huawei, though their ownership is unclear, and Huawei told the FT it does not plan to own its own fabs.
• Combined output from the three prospective plants could exceed the current capacity of similar lines at top foundry SMIC, according to the FT.
• SMIC plans to double 7 nm manufacturing capacity next year, with Huawei as its largest customer, as Beijing pushes domestic processors that aim to rival Nvidia’s H20-class performance.