Alibaba unveils Zhenwu M890 as China accelerates AI chip push
Business
China's tech giants are going all-in on making their own AI chips, thanks to ongoing US export bans on advanced semiconductors.
On May 20, 2026, Alibaba rolled out its new Zhenwu M890 chip, built for next-generation AI, and it's part of a massive more than $53 billion investment push announced last year.
Huawei, Alibaba shipped over 1.3 million chips
Huawei is also in the game, with its Ascend chips and Alibaba's Zhenwu units together shipping over 1.3 million chips in 2025 to hundreds of enterprise clients.
Backed by the government's Made in China 2025 initiative and big perks like discounted electricity for local data centers, Chinese companies now hold about 41% of the country's AI chip market — a huge leap toward self-reliance.