Huawei Eyes Latin America Cloud with New AI Chips
Quick Look
- Huawei is considering deploying its new Ascend AI chips in its cloud and AI services across Latin America, according to Mark Chen, president of Huawei Cloud Latin America.
- This move could increase Chinese hardware presence in a region traditionally served by US suppliers.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Huawei is exploring the deployment of its new Ascend artificial intelligence chips within its cloud and AI services in Latin America. This potential move would expand the presence of Chinese-designed hardware in a region where US suppliers have traditionally been dominant.
Huawei Technologies is studying whether to run its newest Ascend artificial intelligence chips inside its cloud and AI services in Latin America, a senior executive has confirmed, in a move that would push Chinese-designed hardware deeper into a region long courted by US suppliers.
Mark Chen, president of Huawei Cloud Latin America, gave the confirmation in an exclusive interview with the South China Morning Post after his presentation at the Rio Web Summit, the technology and innovation gathering hosted by the Brazilian city this week.
Chen declined to give a timeline, describing Huawei’s newest chip generation Ascend 950 family as “still in the early stages” of deployment at home.
Huawei launched the first of those chips, the 950PR, commercially in China in March, showing it alongside its Atlas 350 computing cluster, a group of chips wired to work as one.
Chinese AI firms have since started using it, with Alibaba and ByteDance among the buyers and DeepSeek running its latest models on the line.
Alibaba is the owner of the South China Morning Post.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Huawei will likely announce a pilot program or initial deployment of Ascend chips in Latin America within the next 12-18 months.
Possible · Within months
Open Questions
- What is the specific timeline for potential deployment?
- What are the key factors influencing this decision?
- How will US suppliers respond to this potential competition?
- What specific cloud and AI services would feature these chips?
