Chinese chipmaker Phytium has reported selling over 10 million Feiteng series processors, a significant boost to the country's local chipmaking industry, particularly as Beijing continues to restrict the use of American silicon in government projects.
The majority of these Feiteng chips are being used in key national projects and industries, from cloud servers to end-user terminals. This success comes despite Phytium being placed on the U.S. entity list, which limits its ability to import American components.
Phytium's Advances
Despite the US restrictions, Phytium continues to develop and build advanced chip solutions, such as:
- The 64-core Feiteng Tengyun S2500 server CPU.
- The Phytium FTC870, rivaling Arm’s Neoverse N2 chip.
- The Feiteng Tengrui D3000 desktop processor for office use.
Other Chinese Chipmakers Gaining Ground
Phytium is not the only Chinese chipmaker making gains. Other companies, like Loongson, are also seeing increased adoption with one of its processors even aboard the Tiangong Space Station. Huawei and Hygon are also expanding their market share, particularly as Chinese telcos shift away from Western technology.
The Future of Chinese Silicon
While some sources say that Chinese chips lag behind US technology by about a decade, China is making major strides in advancing its homegrown processors. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has even stated that hindering China's chipmaking progress is futile. Moreover, the U.S. Senate has found the current White House actions against Chinese tech to be ineffective due to a lack of funding at the Department of Commerce.
The widespread use of homegrown tech by the Chinese government could have a major effect on China’s silicon market in the future. As the Chinese government continues to purchase these chips, companies making them could further invest in research and development. This could also drive the private sector to adopt local chips that are powerful and more affordable. This increased demand from both the government and potentially the private sector could lead to individual Chinese consumers also embracing these processors, similar to how PCs were introduced to U.S. consumers in the 1980s and 90s.
