Huawei’s new AI model for cloud computing services, aimed at keeping up with the generative AI “craze” sparked by ChatGPT. The service launches as Chinese tech continues to grapple with US sanctions.
Huawei Cloud, Huawei's cloud computing division, said the AI model "Pangu Model 3.0" takes a different approach from ChatGPT. The goal of Pangu Model 3.0 is to meet the needs of specific industries, solving problems in operations, product research and development, and software engineering.
At a developer conference in Dongguan, Huawei said it wants to expand its AI-based cloud services to new areas, including government , finance and banking. Zhang Ping'an, CEO of Huawei Cloud Computing Technologies, shared that the company's AI model uses its own hardware and platform because it does not have access to GPUs and software that other companies are using for AI applications.
Mr. Zhang’s comments may be a reference to the US’s restrictions on companies’ access to American-made technology and software. US manufacturer Nvidia provides the powerful GPUs behind ChatGPT and many other cutting-edge AI applications.
Instead of “poetry” like current GPT models, Pangu will focus primarily on “empowering and reshaping different industries,” according to Mr. Zhang.
Zhang said Pangu provides a stable infrastructure because its computing power can be 1.1 times higher than mainstream GPUs. “If you can’t buy mainstream GPUs, you can now use Huawei’s AI cloud service, freeing you from expensive GPUs,” he said.
In addition to Huawei, other Chinese tech companies are also racing to launch their own AI products. Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu are among more than 30 companies and organizations that have announced the development of their own large language AI models in recent months.
Pangu Model was first introduced in 2021 as Huawei sought new growth drivers following a series of US sanctions. Since then, Huawei Cloud has participated in more than 1,000 AI-related projects in fields ranging from mining and railways to meteorology and pharmaceuticals. The division operates three large-scale AI computing centers in China, all of which train large AI models.
Huawei Cloud’s domestic market share is expected to rise to around 19% in 2022, second only to Alibaba Cloud, according to research firm Canalys. While most of the market is domestic, the division is also making inroads overseas through partnerships and opening new data centers in Türkiye and Egypt.
(According to Nikkei)
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