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China Launches Domestic AI Chip Data Center
8 Apr
Summary
- Alibaba and China Telecom launched a new data center in Shaoguan.
- The facility is built around 10,000 of Alibaba's Zhenwu AI chips.
- This deployment aims to boost China's domestic AI infrastructure.
A new data center has been launched in Shaoguan, Guangdong province, by Alibaba and China Telecom. This facility is powered by 10,000 of Alibaba's Zhenwu AI chips, marking the first large-scale deployment of these processors in the Greater Bay Area. The Zhenwu chips, developed by Alibaba's T-head unit, are designed for both AI training and inferencing, capable of managing models with hundreds of billions of parameters.
This launch signifies China's accelerated efforts to build its own AI infrastructure, a trend amplified by U.S. export restrictions on advanced semiconductors. Alibaba Cloud has characterized the facility as "fully domestic," indicating a national focus on self-reliance in computing power. The goal is to move beyond benchmark chasing towards practical, large-scale industrial applications.
Alibaba's cloud unit, a rapidly growing segment, encompasses the entire AI technology stack, from chip design to proprietary AI models offered as services. The Shaoguan data center is expected to expand significantly, potentially reaching 100,000 chips. This domestic push is a direct response to policies restricting the use of foreign-made AI chips in state-funded projects and encouraging Chinese firms to cease purchasing from companies like Nvidia.
