Huawei’s Ascend chips are under fire after being linked to a major delay in a flagship artificial intelligence project.

Chinese AI firm DeepSeek reportedly planned to use Huawei’s processors for training its latest model as part of a push to rely on domestic technology.

The chips allegedly struggled with stability and performance during testing, forcing DeepSeek to switch to Nvidia hardware to continue development.

This setback undermines Huawei’s claims that its Ascend line can compete with top-tier global chipmakers in high-performance AI computing.

The incident also highlights a growing credibility gap between Huawei’s marketing promises and the real-world results of its semiconductor technology.

Industry analysts say such failures could discourage other companies from trusting Huawei with mission-critical AI workloads.

For Huawei, the episode is not just a technical failure but a blow to its broader ambition of leading China’s high-tech independence drive.

If these issues persist, Huawei risks losing its place in the global AI race it has worked hard to join.