Alibaba said its semiconductor unit T-Head filed confidentially for a Hong Kong IPO on September 11. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange has cleared the proposed spinoff. Alibaba plans to retain control of the chip designer after the listing.
Approval status
The listing still needs approval from the exchange's listing committee. It also requires a filing with the China Securities Regulatory Commission. The offer size, valuation, and ownership dilution have not been determined.
T-Head background
T-Head was founded in 2018. It first designed chips for Alibaba Cloud workloads. The unit later expanded into processors, AI accelerators, and other data center components.
Product plans
The Zhenwu V900 accelerator is scheduled for commercial release in the first quarter of 2027. Alibaba aims to expand its global data center capacity beyond 20 gigawatts by 2032. At a September conference, CEO Eddie Wu projected higher annual AI chip shipments.
Alibaba and T-Head still need to make final decisions. The exchange waived guaranteed share allocations for existing Alibaba shareholders. Alibaba has not provided a listing timetable.