Market Development Analysis of AI Chip Industry: Domestic AI Chip Market Enters Critical Growth Window
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Domestic AI Chip Market Enters Critical Growth Window
Reports indicate that AI model iterations are accelerating rapidly, with manufacturers substantially increasing investments in intelligent computing power. This has led to surging demand for high-end AI servers that support storage and training. Many AI server manufacturers have seen their orders this year concentrated on high-end AI servers.
Currently, major model developers are vigorously iterating their products. According to Wang Xiaochuan, founder and CEO of Baichuan Intelligence, the company's large models maintain a monthly iteration cycle for model data.
AI large models are driving continuous expansion in AI server computing power demand. Reports show that in 2023, while overall AI server unit sales declined year-over-year due to cautious industry investment and contraction in discriminative AI application scenarios, order values are expected to show year-over-year growth. This is attributed to the concentrated爆发 of computing power demand from AI large models, which have become the primary demand driver for intelligent computing power.
Industry insiders note that with accelerating AI model iterations, intelligent computing power has become a scarce resource. For the foreseeable future, China's AI server market will remain supply-constrained, presenting a critical growth window for domestic AI chip market expansion.
Over the past two years, as awareness grows about the importance of AI chips for computing power, the field has attracted an increasing number of players.
AI chips, also known as AI accelerators or computing cards, are specialized modules designed to handle large-scale computational tasks in artificial intelligence applications (non-computational tasks are still managed by CPUs). Currently, AI chips are mainly categorized into GPU, FPGA, and ASIC.
Many AI data processing tasks involve matrix multiplication and addition. GPUs, which operate in parallel, offer a cost-effective solution but come with higher power consumption. FPGAs, equipped with built-in DSP modules and local memory, are more energy-efficient but generally more expensive.
From a technical perspective, the first AI chips in the market included various combinations of off-the-shelf CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs, and DSPs. While new designs are being developed by companies such as Intel, Google, NVIDIA, Qualcomm, and IBM, at least one CPU is still required to control these systems. However, when streaming data is parallelized, various types of coprocessors become necessary.
Artificial intelligence and integrated circuits are driving forces behind the new wave of technological and industrial revolutions. They are leading industries that support economic and social development and drive overall productivity growth.
AI Chip Industry Market Development Analysis
AI chips, as a vital part of the foundational layer in artificial intelligence, currently represent a relatively weak technological area in China, with substantial room for industry growth and development. With the intelligent evolution of the socio-economy and continuous advancements in AI technology, the application fields of AI chips are expanding. Coupled with the widespread adoption of 5G applications and policy-driven initiatives, the market demand for AI chips in China is growing rapidly, and the market size is increasing at a swift pace.
The artificial intelligence industry chain can be divided into three parts: the foundational layer, the technological layer, and the application layer. The foundational layer serves as the basis for the development of the AI industry, providing data and computational power support for artificial intelligence, with AI chips being the cornerstone of AI computational power. As an essential component of the foundational layer in artificial intelligence, the technology in this related field in China is currently relatively underdeveloped, offering extensive potential for industry growth and advancement.
With the intelligent development of the socio-economy and the continuous improvement of AI technology, the application areas of AI chips are broadening. The popularization of 5G applications and policy support are further accelerating the rapid growth in market demand for AI chips in China, with the market size expanding swiftly. Moreover, as the scope of AI applications in China continues to expand, the demand for AI chips is expected to rise significantly.
China's AI chip industry started relatively late, and there is a certain gap compared to international advanced levels, which has become a significant factor currently constraining the development of China's AI industry. As the role of artificial intelligence in future societal development becomes increasingly prominent, the country has gradually elevated the development of the AI industry to a national strategic level, with the research, development, and technological upgrading of AI chips receiving considerable national attention and emphasis. China's "14th Five-Year Plan and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035" explicitly proposes to strengthen the innovative application of key digital technologies, focusing on critical areas such as high-end chips and key AI algorithms, accelerating breakthroughs and iterative applications in basic theories, fundamental algorithms, equipment materials, and fostering the growth of emerging digital industries like artificial intelligence.