Huawei Seizes 50% of China AI Chip Market as Nvidia Share Seen Falling to 8%
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 29
Huawei Seizes 50% of China AI Chip Market as Nvidia Share Seen Falling to 8%
3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 29
Summary
Bernstein estimates Huawei will hold about 50% of China’s AI chip market this year, while Nvidia’s share drops to roughly 8% after the U.S. curbed advanced chip exports.
Those controls first blocked Nvidia’s H200 sales, and by the time Washington eased some restrictions, Beijing had shifted policy support toward domestic chips as part of a broader self-sufficiency drive.
Huawei’s Ascend 950 chips are viewed by analysts as broadly comparable to Nvidia’s H200 in some commercial uses, and DeepSeek has already adapted its V4 model to run on Huawei hardware.
Nvidia still matters in China because top-end AI training and research demand often exceeds local supply, with universities and tech firms still seeking its chips despite smuggling cases and import uncertainty.
The shift underscores a wider strategic split: Nvidia’s global revenue keeps rising outside China, while Huawei is using its home-market gains to build toward future chip exports.
As chip wars escalate, who controls the power infrastructure that will run the world's AI?
Did U.S. export controls inadvertently create Nvidia's most formidable global competitor?
How Huawei Captured 60% of China’s AI Chip Market in 2026: The Fallout of U.S. Export Controls and the Rise of Domestic Innovation
Overview
In 2026, China’s AI chip market underwent a dramatic transformation as foreign dominance faded and domestic players surged ahead. This shift was triggered by NVIDIA’s near-total exit, which created a substantial vacuum in the market. Chinese firms, led by Huawei, quickly filled this gap. Huawei became the primary beneficiary, capturing the largest share and seeing its AI chip sales surge by at least 60%. As a result, Huawei rose to a dominant position, marking a new era where China’s AI chip industry is driven by homegrown innovation and rapid growth.