Broker: China Galaxy International Securities (Hong Kong) Co., Limited
Date of Report: August 4, 2025

Huawei Ascend 384 Supernode: Ushering in a New Era for China’s AI Computing Power and Investment Landscape

Introduction: China’s AI Computing Power Takes Center Stage

At the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, Huawei unveiled its groundbreaking Ascend 384 Supernode, marking a transformative milestone for China’s computing power sector. As AI development accelerates, this debut signals a golden opportunity for domestic players and investors, with the potential to reshape the entire technology landscape.

Event Highlights: Record-breaking AI Conference in Shanghai

• The 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) spanned July 26-28 in Shanghai.
• Exhibition area exceeded 70,000 square meters for the first time.
• Over 800 companies participated, showcasing more than 3,000 products.
• Notable exhibits included 40+ large language models, 50 AI terminal products, 60 intelligent robots, and 80 major new launches.

This event was the largest of its kind in history, underscoring China’s ambition to emerge as a global AI powerhouse.

Huawei Ascend 384 Supernode: Technical Specifications and Market Impact

Huawei’s Ascend 384 Supernode, also referred to as the Atlas 900 A3 SuperPoD, stands out for its world-class performance, directly rivaling NVIDIA’s flagship GB200 NVL72.

• Composed of 16 cabinets: 12 dedicated to computing, 4 for unified management.
• Contains 384 Ascend 910C chips across 48 server groups (each cabinet houses 4 server nodes).
• All units interconnected via a high-speed bus, overcoming internal communication bottlenecks to form a unified computing system.

Performance Comparison: Huawei vs. NVIDIA

• The Ascend 384 Supernode cluster delivers 1.7x the computing power of NVIDIA’s GB200 NVL72.
• Memory capacity is 3.6x greater, and bandwidth is 2.1x higher than NVIDIA’s offering.

Breakthrough Architecture: Bus Technology and Cluster Efficiency

Huawei’s proprietary bus technology enables ultra-high bandwidth and ultra-low latency between the 384 NPUs, solving longstanding communication bottlenecks within large AI clusters.

• Inter-processor bandwidth is 15x higher than traditional architectures.
• Single-hop latency is reduced by 10x, breaking the industry’s 15ms decode latency barrier for real-time deep-thinking applications.
• Real-world training of dense models (e.g., LLaMA3 with hundreds of billions of parameters) is 2.5x faster than on traditional clusters.
• For communication-intensive models (Qwen, DeepSeek, multi-modal/MoE architectures), performance improvements exceed 3x.
• System efficiency: A single Huawei Supernode delivers 4x the performance of NVIDIA’s GB200 NVL72, with computing power efficiency 2.3x higher and bandwidth efficiency 1.8x higher.

These architectural advances allow Huawei to overcome the traditional disadvantage of single-card performance, positioning its solution as a viable and superior domestic alternative for AI computing.

Investment Outlook: A Golden Era for China’s Computing Ecosystem

The launch of the Ascend 384 Supernode sets the stage for rapid growth in China’s domestic computing power industry. Systematic engineering and architectural optimizations have helped close the gap with global leaders, opening unprecedented opportunities for the entire domestic supply chain.

China Galaxy International maintains an Overweight rating on the sector, citing robust growth prospects amid ongoing AI advancements in FY2025.

Key Stock Picks and Sector Opportunities

Investors seeking exposure to this new era of domestic computing power should consider the following companies across core segments:

1. Domestic Computing Chips and Hardware

• Dawning Information Industry (603019 CH; ADD) – Leading provider of high-performance computing systems.
• Hygon (688041 CH; ADD) – Specializes in CPU and server chip solutions.
• Loongson (688047 CH; NR) – Develops independent CPU architectures.
• Cambricon (688256 CH; NR) – Focused on AI chip design and development.
• Ruijie Networks (301165 CH; NR) – Provides advanced networking and IT infrastructure.
• China Greatwall Technology (000066 CH; NR) – Offers computing hardware and cybersecurity solutions.
• Digital China (000034 CH; NR) – Integrates IT and smart computing systems.
• Talkweb Information System (002261 CH; NR) – Delivers IT services and digital solutions.
• Huaqin Technology (603296 CH; NR) – Manufactures intelligent hardware terminals.
• Bichamp Cutting Technology (002843 CH; NR) – Supplies advanced manufacturing tools for technology production.
• Sichuan Huafeng Technology (688629 CH; NR) – Engaged in high-end semiconductor materials.
• Shenzhen Megmeet Electrical (002851 CH; NR) – Provides industrial power electronics equipment.
• Shenzhen Envicool Technology (002837 CH; ADD) – Specializes in cooling solutions for data centers and electronics.
• Sugon Data Energy (872808 CH; ADD) – Focuses on energy-efficient data center infrastructure.
• iSoftStone Information Technology (301236 CH; NR) – Offers software development and IT consulting.

2. Data Centers and Computing Power Leasing

• Range Technology (300442 CH; NR) – Operates large-scale data center facilities.
• Sinnet (300383 CH; ADD) – Provides cloud data center and network services.
• Dawei Technology (600589 CH; NR) – Specializes in IT infrastructure services.
• CDXJ Digital (603887 CH; NR) – Engaged in digital infrastructure development.
• Haikong Nanke Huatie (603300 CH; NR) – Focuses on technology and data center construction.

3. Cloud Computing

• Kingdee International (268 HK; ADD) – Cloud ERP and enterprise management software leader.
• Kingsoft Cloud (3896 HK; NR) – Offers a broad suite of cloud solutions.
• UCloud (688158 CH; NR) – Provides secure and flexible cloud computing services.
• Yonyou Network (600588 CH; NR) – Specializes in cloud-based enterprise management software.

Risks to Watch

• Potential slowdowns in AI innovation and adoption.
• Policy uncertainties and regulatory risks.
• R&D progress delays and weaker-than-expected demand.
• Bottlenecks in supply chains and production capacity.
• Rising industry competition, both domestically and internationally.

Conclusion: The Future of Domestic AI Computing in China

Huawei’s Ascend 384 Supernode marks a pivotal breakthrough for China’s AI ambitions, providing a robust, high-performance, and domestically controlled alternative in a market historically dominated by global giants. With substantial improvements in computing power, memory, and bandwidth, the Supernode stands poised to catalyze the next phase of growth for China’s entire computing ecosystem.

Investors should closely monitor the evolving landscape, as the new chapter in domestic computing power brings not only technological innovation but also a wealth of market opportunities across chips, hardware, data centers, and cloud computing.