In the global smartphone market, the launch of Huawei products is undoubtedly always able to set off a new boom. Huawei's Pura70 series products, especially the Kirin 9010 chip it carry, have once again sparked extensive discussions in the industry about Huawei's semiconductor technology. Recently, the Japan analyst TechanaLye's teardown analysis of the Pura70 Pro gave a shocking conclusion - Huawei's chip technology is only three years behind the world's most advanced level. This conclusion has attracted widespread attention, which not only makes us re-examine Huawei's technical strength, but also leads to the real development level of domestic chip technology.
1. The core findings of TechanaLye's disassembly
TechanaLye's teardown report reveals Huawei's progress in key technology areas. First of all, the 1TB NAND Flash flash memory carried inside the Pura70 Pro is supplied by domestic manufacturers, and 90% of the components of the whole machine are domestic. Among them, Huawei's self-developed HiSilicon chips occupy a core position, which proves Huawei's deep accumulation in independent research and development. This data clearly reflects that although Huawei is subject to international sanctions in the chip manufacturing sector, its continuous progress in supply chain management and technological self-sufficiency cannot be ignored.
In addition, TechanaLye notes that the Kirin 9010 excels in multi-core performance. According to the evaluation data of Geek Bay, the comprehensive performance of the Kirin 9010 chip has increased by about 8% compared with the previous generation of Kirin 9000S. In the Geekbench 6 test, the Kirin 9010's single-core and multi-core performance has been significantly improved, further indicating Huawei's breakthrough in chip design and optimization.
It is worth noting that the Kirin 9010 adopts Huawei's self-developed advanced architecture, which not only achieves leapfrog improvements in CPU energy efficiency and IPC performance, but also performs well in 5G communication modules and AI processing units. This allows Huawei to maintain a certain degree of competitiveness with international giants in key areas.
Figure: How‘'s the strength of Huawei's Kirin chip?
2. The gap with the world's most advanced chips
TechanaLye believes that although Huawei's chip technology still lags behind the world's most advanced products, the gap is only about three years. This conclusion is particularly important because it means that Huawei has gradually shaken off the constraints of the external environment and is gradually catching up with the world's top chip manufacturers.
From the perspective of historical development, global semiconductor giants such as Qualcomm, Samsung, Apple, etc. have leading advantages in technological innovation and manufacturing processes. For example, Apple's A17 Pro chip uses TSMC's 3nm process, while Huawei's Kirin 9010 is expected to use the more mature 7nm process. However, considering that Huawei was still able to launch competitive chips against the backdrop of global supply chain disruptions, this is a huge achievement in itself.
Specifically, most of the world's most advanced chips are leading in the fields of process technology, AI acceleration capabilities, and 5G performance. However, the Kirin 9010's performance in these aspects, especially in terms of AI processing capabilities, image processing and energy management, is close to the industry's advanced level. For example, the Pura70 Pro performs extremely well in the imaging system, especially in the areas of night scenes and high dynamic range processing. This shows that while the Kirin 9010 lags behind in some areas, there is no significant gap in the experience in real-world use cases.
3. Behind the rise of domestic chips
Huawei's Kirin 9010 chip is not only a reflection of its own technological progress, but also a microcosm of the rise of China's semiconductor industry. In recent years, China's chip industry has made tremendous progress, not only in terms of design and manufacturing, but also in terms of chip self-sufficiency and supply chain integration.
According to the China Semiconductor Industry Association, China's chip self-sufficiency rate will reach about 25% in 2023, compared with only 15% in 2020. Among them, the continuous R&D investment of Huawei HiSilicon and other enterprises has played a crucial role. Chinese technology companies, such as Huawei, are gradually narrowing the gap with the world's leading companies by strengthening independent innovation and localizing their supply chains.
In addition, the Chinese government has also accelerated the development of the semiconductor industry through policy support and capital investment. For example, the "14th Five-Year Plan" clearly states that it is necessary to vigorously promote independent innovation in the semiconductor industry, and has set up a number of special funds to support chip R&D and manufacturing. With the investment of more resources, China's strength in chip design and manufacturing will be further enhanced in the future.
4. Future development trends and Huawei's possibilities
Looking ahead, although the three-year gap between Huawei and the world's most advanced chips will not be completely eliminated in the short term, it is expected to be further shortened in the next few years with technological innovation, the recovery of the global industrial chain, and the strengthening of independent R&D. In particular, Huawei still has strong competitiveness in the fields of 5G communication technology, AI chips, and smartphone processors.
According to Counterpoint, Huawei's share of the global smartphone market has gradually recovered despite sanctions and supply chain constraints, with pre-orders for the Pura70 series exceeding 2 million units. This data fully proves the market's recognition of Huawei's brand and technology. In addition, the success of Huawei's foldable phone also shows its ability to innovate in the high-end market.
At the same time, Huawei is actively promoting its "1+8+N" ecosystem strategy, which closely integrates smartphones with smart homes, Internet of Vehicles, and wearable devices to build new user experiences. The advantages of this ecosystem can not only improve user stickiness, but also further enhance the practical application value of Kirin chips.
Conclusion
To sum up, the successful release of Huawei's Kirin 9010 chip not only marks Huawei's great progress in technological self-sufficiency and innovation, but also provides strong support for the rise of China's semiconductor industry. Although there is still a gap with the world's most advanced chip technology, this gap is gradually narrowing. With Huawei's continuous efforts in supply chain, R&D investment, and market expansion, we have reason to believe that Huawei will occupy a more important position in the semiconductor industry in the future. The future of China's chip industry will also be more hopeful because of these technological breakthroughs.
