Shares of Knowledge Atlas Tech Joint Stock (HK:2513) climbed on Tuesday following reporting that the company behind Zhipu AI is exploring the design of a custom application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) intended to accelerate its GLM family of large language models.
In Hong Kong trading, Zhipu AI stock rose 9.9%, outpacing a roughly 2% advance in the Hang Seng. The gains followed accounts that the firm has held initial talks with several domestic chip design houses about building an AI processor tailored to its models.
The discussions are preliminary, and the company has not selected a partner, according to the report. Sources cited in the reporting described the project as early-stage, and estimated that development would likely take in excess of two years should Zhipu proceed.
Interest in a proprietary chip is being driven in part by very rapid uptake of Zhipu’s most recent model. The report noted that daily token usage for GLM-5.2 surged 27-fold during the first week after that model’s launch last month, a jump that has increased demand on compute capacity.
These capacity pressures come at a time when U.S. export restrictions continue to constrain Chinese access to Nvidia’s most advanced AI accelerators, according to the reporting. That dynamic has prompted a number of Chinese developers to look for alternatives that can be produced domestically or by non-U.S. suppliers.
ASICs differ from general-purpose graphics processors in that they are engineered for particular computing workloads. When deployed at scale, specialized silicon can deliver lower operating expenses and better energy efficiency for those tasks, the report said. For Zhipu, a proprietary processor could reduce dependence on third-party suppliers while lowering the cost of running inference workloads for its models.
If it moves forward, Zhipu would join other technology firms that have invested in custom AI silicon to improve performance and reduce reliance on external suppliers. The reporting listed companies that have pursued in-house processors, including Google, OpenAI, Alibaba and ByteDance, and said Chinese AI developers are increasingly seeking domestic options amid tightened export controls.
The next key development for the project would be the selection of a chip design partner, which would indicate that the plan has advanced beyond exploratory talks. Until such a partner is chosen, the initiative remains in an early, uncertain phase.
Summary: Zhipu AI's parent, Knowledge Atlas Tech (HK:2513), saw its shares jump after reports the company is exploring the development of a custom ASIC to run its GLM LLMs. The effort is preliminary, with partner selection pending and a development timeline likely exceeding two years. Rapid uptake of GLM-5.2 and U.S. export limits on advanced Nvidia chips are cited as contextual drivers.