Chinese semiconductor firm Cambricon Technologies, seen as a potential future challenger to Nvidia, plans to raise nearly 4 billion yuan (US$560 million) for AI chip development, boosting its standing in the country’s tech self-sufficiency drive.

In a statement on the weekend, Cambricon said the Shanghai Stock Exchange had given the go-ahead for its 3.98 billion yuan fundraising plan, which is pending approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission. The move comes after its stock price nearly tripled over the last 12 months as China’s onshore investors rushed to bet on its AI prospects.

The shares gained another 6 per cent in Shanghai on Monday to reach 976.8 yuan, on track to become only the second stock to hit 1,000 yuan in China’s onshore market after Kweichow Moutai. Its shares have gained more than 280 per cent over the past year.

Cambricon’s prospects have been boosted by the Chinese government’s determination to use local artificial intelligence chips. As the Post previously reported, China is requiring its data centres to use more home-grown computing chips in a move that underscores Beijing’s accelerated efforts to cut reliance on foreign technology as the US tightens export controls.

Publicly owned computing hubs across the country have been asked to source more than 50 per cent of their chips from domestic producers to support the indigenous semiconductor sector, generating demand for players like Cambricon.