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America has controlled the worldwide tech industry for many years. However, the World's Second Largest Economy seeks to alter that dynamic.

The nation is pouring massive sums of funds into AI technologies and robotics. Crucially, Chinese authorities is also channeling significant investment toward developing the advanced semiconductors that power these innovative technologies.

Last month, Jensen Huang cautioned that the Chinese semiconductor industry was only "slightly trailing" the American tech sector in chip development.

Therefore, can Beijing rival American technology and reduce its dependence on imported high-end chips?

Following the DeepSeek Launch

China's DeepSeek made headlines through the tech world in 2024 when it introduced a alternative to OpenAI's ChatGPT.

The announcement by a relatively unknown startup was impressive for several reasons, including because the firm reported it required less funding to train than top artificial intelligence systems.

It was said to have been developed using far fewer high-end chips than its competitors, and its debut caused a drop in the chip giant's stock price.

Moreover, momentum in China's tech sector has grown. This year, some of the nation's leading technology companies have made it clear that they intend to take on the AI chip leader and become the main advanced chip suppliers for domestic firms.

Earlier this year, Chinese state media reported that a recently unveiled processor developed by the tech giant Alibaba can match the capabilities of Nvidia's H20 semiconductors while consuming less power. H20s are modified chips made for the China under US export rules.

Another Chinese Tech Giant also introduced what it called its most powerful chips ever, along with a three-year plan to dispute Nvidia's dominance of the artificial intelligence sector.

The Chinese tech giant also stated it would make its blueprints and computer programs available to the public in China in an initiative to draw firms away from their reliance on American technology.

Other Chinese chip developers have also obtained major contracts with big businesses in the nation. MetaX is supplying high-end processors for entities like state-owned telecoms operator China Unicom.

Another hotly-tipped possible competitor to Nvidia is headquartered in Beijing Cambricon Technologies.

The company's stock have surged in price over the last three months as market participants bet that it will benefit from Beijing's push for Chinese firms to use locally produced high-end chips.

Tencent, which operates the all-in-one platform WeChat, is an additional prominent technology leader that has heeded the government’s call to use Chinese chips.

Additionally, there has been no lack of government-supported exhibitions, promoting domestic tech firms in a effort to attract investors.

"Rivalry has clearly emerged," a spokesperson for Nvidia stated in response to questions about the recent progress made by China's semiconductor companies.

"Customers will select the most effective solutions for running the globally dominant commercial applications and open-source models. We will persist in our efforts to earn the confidence and support of leading programmers worldwide."

Yet, some experts have cautioned that claims made by Chinese chipmakers should be viewed skeptically due to a lack of publicly available data and standardized performance measures.

China's semiconductors are comparable to the US in forecasting applications but fall short in complex analytics, noted computer scientist Jawad Haj-Yahya, who has tested both processors from the US and China.

"The difference is clear and it is surely narrowing. But, it is unlikely they will close it in the near future."

Where China Leads - and Lags

During a technology and business podcast in September, the CEO of Nvidia emphasized the advantages of China's tech sector, attributing its dedicated and vast workforce, intense domestic competition and advancements in semiconductor production.

"It represents a dynamic innovative, advanced, contemporary sector," he said, encouraging the US to vie "to maintain its position."

This evaluation is expected to be welcomed by authorities in Beijing.

China has consistently aimed to become a worldwide frontrunner in technology, in part to reduce its reliance on the West.

Over time, the nation has poured significant resources into what President Xi Jinping calls "high-quality development", which covers industries from renewables to AI.

Even before US President Donald Trump's return to the US presidency, the Chinese government had spent tens of billions of dollars as part of its initiatives to transform its vast economy from the "world's factory" for basic products to a center of advanced industries.

A continuing trade dispute with the United States under Trump has only made that mission more pressing.

Xi has pledged to make his nation more self-reliant and not depend on "anyone's gifts."

Mr Huang has also cautioned that the US should engage in open commerce with the Asian nation or face the possibility of giving it the advantage in the AI race.

This comes against a backdrop of Chinese authorities exerting more scrutiny on Nvidia as it launched an anti-monopoly probe into the firm last month.

However, China's state-led approach can also be an obstacle to creativity if everyone in the industry only focuses on a "shared goal", noted computing professor a technology scholar from National Taiwan University.

It can make it more difficult for innovative concepts to challenge conventions, she commented.

China's chip industry has also yet to overcome concerns that its products can be more challenging to use than those of competitors from the West like Nvidia.

Prof Yang believes these issues can soon be resolved by the large quantity of skilled technology professionals.

"One should not underestimate the capability of China to close the gap."

'Bargaining Chip' for China

She described the latest reports from China about the semiconductor industry as a "negotiating tool" in its months-long trade discussions with the US.

Beijing seeks to pressure US authorities into providing its high-tech tools or lose its position in such a significant economy, stated the analyst.

These announcements project capability on China's part, even though it is {