Chinese chipmaker surges 755% on IPO debut amid AI frenzy
What's the story
MetaX Integrated Circuits Shanghai Co., a Chinese chipmaker, saw its shares skyrocket by an incredible 755% on its trading debut today. The company raised $585.8 million in its initial public offering (IPO). The massive jump puts MetaX on track to become the best-performing IPO in China for companies with a market cap between $500 million and $1 billion over the last decade.
Market performance
MetaX's market cap surpasses 300 billion yuan
The retail portion of MetaX's IPO was subscribed nearly 3,000 times, even more than the demand for Moore Threads Technology Co., whose shares have already risen six times from its IPO price in just eight trading sessions. The stellar performance has pushed MetaX's market cap past 300 billion yuan, with its IPO priced at 104.66 yuan per share.
Industry impact
MetaX's role in AI development and market competition
Like Moore Threads, MetaX makes Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) for artificial intelligence developers. The company is seen as a potential competitor to NVIDIA Corp., whose advanced chips are banned from being sold in the Chinese markets due to trade restrictions. Despite the surge, MetaX's price-to-sales ratio currently stands at 56.4, lower than the industry average of 127.4 for peers such as Cambricon and AMD.
Company background
MetaX's roots and future prospects
MetaX was founded by a team that includes three former AMD employees, including Chairman and CEO Chen Weiliang. The company's AI-focused Xiyun C500 series, which it claimed was similar to NVIDIA's A100, accounted for nearly 98% of its revenue in 2024. The newer C588 generation has significantly narrowed the performance gap with NVIDIA's H100, according to MetaX.