China’s New GPU Challenger: Should NVIDIA Be Worried?
Competition in the GPU market has long been dominated by a few powerful players. While Intel’s entry into mid-range and budget graphics cards was widely welcomed, a new and potentially disruptive challenger is now emerging from China. The question is no longer whether China can build GPUs — but how far and how fast it can go.
Quick Insight:
Even imperfect first-generation GPUs can signal major long-term shifts. What matters most is whether new entrants can iterate quickly, improve software, and secure real-world users.
1. A Brief History of Chinese GPUs
• For decades, China relied almost entirely on Western GPU imports.
• Early domestic efforts were limited to research and military use, not consumer computing.
• In 2006, Jingjia Micro produced the JM series for aerospace and defense, marking China’s first real step toward GPU self-reliance.
• These early chips lacked DirectX support and consumer-grade drivers, making them unsuitable for gaming or everyday PCs.
2. The Turning Point: Trade Pressure and AI Demand
• Around 2018, geopolitical tensions and AI growth accelerated China’s push for domestic chips.
• This era produced the so-called “Four Little Dragons,” startups founded by former NVIDIA and AMD engineers.
• Moore Threads made headlines in 2022 with the MTT S80, China’s first domestic gaming GPU with PCIe 5.0 support.
• However, poor drivers and unstable performance limited its real-world usefulness.
3. Enter Lisuan and the G100 GPU
• Lisuan was founded in late 2021 by former Silicon Valley engineers.
• Learning from earlier failures, the company placed heavy emphasis on software optimization.
• This effort resulted in the Lisuan G100, which has now begun shipping — meaning it is a real, commercial product.
• The G100 is built on a domestic 6nm process and supports modern APIs like DirectX 12.
4. Performance: Promise vs Reality
• Lisuan claims the G100 can rival the NVIDIA RTX 4060 with up to 24 TFLOPS of FP32 performance.
• It also supports Windows on ARM, a feature not widely prioritized by major competitors.
• However, early benchmark leaks suggest performance closer to much older GPUs.
• Reported specs such as low clock speeds and extremely limited video memory raise concerns.
5. Engineering Sample or Fundamental Limitation?
• Some believe the poor benchmarks reflect immature drivers or misreported engineering samples.
• The testing environment and operating system configuration may have distorted results.
• If accurate, however, the data suggests the silicon may fall far short of its marketing claims.
• More real-world benchmarks are expected as units reach users.
6. Why the G100 Still Matters
• Even performance comparable to decade-old GPUs represents a major breakthrough.
• Designing a functional GPU architecture from scratch is extremely difficult.
• The G100 successfully boots, runs Windows, and executes modern graphics APIs.
• Many of its weaknesses could be improved through software updates and future revisions.
7. Government Support and a Captive Market
• China’s Xinchuang initiative is replacing foreign hardware with domestic alternatives at scale.
• This guarantees Lisuan a large base of real-world users.
• Such a protected environment enables rapid iteration, funding stability, and data-driven improvements.
• This model shields Lisuan from the intense competition that crushed many Western GPU startups.
8. What Does the Future Hold?
• A competitive mid-range or flagship GPU could still be years away.
• Timelines could range from two years to a decade, depending on execution.
• If Lisuan refines its architecture and drivers, it could eventually compete in select segments.
• Availability outside China remains uncertain due to market and political barriers.
Final Thoughts
Lisuan’s G100 may not yet threaten NVIDIA’s dominance, but it represents something more important: proof that China can build functional, modern GPUs using domestic technology. If software maturity and architectural refinement follow, today’s underwhelming performance could become tomorrow’s serious competition.
