DeepSeek, the AI start-up based in China, is reportedly developing its own AI chip in a bid to reduce dependence on processors developed by Nvidia and Huawei.
According to Reuters, the chip will be designed to tackle inference workloads, a stage of AI computing where trained models are utilised for generating responses for users rather than for training new models.
The company has apparently been working on the project for about a year and is in talks with external partners including chip-design firms, foundries and memory suppliers, It has also increased recruitment of chip design engineers, although hiring has been conducted privately without public job listings.
For DeepSeek, developing its own silicon could alleviate growing pressure from U.S. export restrictions limiting Chinese companies’ access to advanced AI chips. The company has previously relied on Nvidia and Huawei hardware, including Nvidia’s H800 chip to train the foundation model behind its R1 reasoning model.
However, developing in-house AI silicon could still prove a challenge as China’s access to critical minerals, advanced manufacturing facilities and high-bandwidth memory components remains constrained by U.S. restrictions.
Domestic rivals including Alibaba and Baidu have previously also developed their own chips, increasing competition in China’s AI semiconductor space.
AI companies globally are seeking greater control over the hardware needed to run their services. Last month, OpenAI unveiled Jalapeno, its first custom inference chip developed in partnership with Broadcom, while US AI player Anthropic has reportedly also weighed developing its own AI chips.
Source: Mobile World Live
Image Credit: DeepSeek
Source: Tahawul Tech