Huawei Technologies remains a generation behind its U.S. counterparts in chipmaking capabilities, but the company is finding innovative ways to narrow the gap, said CEO Ren Zhengfei in a rare interview with Chinese state-run People’s Daily. His remarks come amid intensifying U.S.-China tech tensions and fresh rounds of trade discussions in London.
Ren acknowledged that Huawei’s chips lag those of U.S. firms, but emphasized that the company is compensating through alternative computing techniques, including cluster computing, mathematical models, and non-Moore’s law approaches. He asserted, “Our single chip is still behind the U.S. by a generation. We use mathematics to supplement physics, non-Moore’s law to supplement Moore’s law and cluster computing to supplement single chips and the results can also achieve practical conditions. Software is not a bottleneck for us.”
Huawei invests around 180 billion yuan ($25.07 billion) annually in R&D and sees strong potential in compound chips, which combine multiple materials to enhance performance. Ren stressed there is “no need to worry about the chip problem,” seeking to allay concerns stemming from prolonged U.S. export restrictions.
His comments mark the first public acknowledgment by Huawei of its progress and limitations in advanced chipmaking—an issue that has become a central point of friction in U.S.-China relations. Since 2019, Washington has imposed sweeping export controls on Chinese tech firms, including Huawei, in efforts to limit their access to cutting-edge semiconductors and production equipment.
Ren also suggested that Huawei’s capabilities may have been overstated by the U.S., saying, “The United States has exaggerated Huawei’s achievements. Huawei is not that great. We have to work hard to reach their evaluation.”
Huawei’s Ascend series of AI chips, designed to compete with Nvidia’s products in China, are at the heart of the company’s AI ambitions. Despite U.S. regulations that classify the use of Ascend chips as a potential violation of export controls, Huawei continues to make headway in the AI infrastructure space. In April, it unveiled the AI CloudMatrix 384, which connects 384 Ascend 910C chips in a cluster, allowing for large-scale AI model training.
Analysts have noted that in some benchmarks, the CloudMatrix system could outperform Nvidia’s latest GB200 NVL72, although Nvidia’s chips remain more powerful overall. Dylan Patel, founder of SemiAnalysis, said at the time that Huawei’s development marked a milestone, suggesting China now had AI system capabilities rivaling or surpassing Nvidia in certain respects.
While Nvidia and the U.S. Commerce Department did not immediately comment on Ren’s statements, the broader geopolitical implications are evident. As Ren noted, approximately one-third of Huawei’s research budget is allocated to theoretical exploration, underlining his belief that foundational science is crucial to long-term innovation. “Without theory, there will be no breakthroughs, and we will not catch up with the United States,” he concluded.
Ren’s remarks offer a nuanced view of Huawei’s technological position—acknowledging current limitations while reaffirming the company’s commitment to long-term advancement through innovation and alternative computing strategies.
