Chip war: China’s GPU start-up helmed by former Nvidia executive kicks off pre-IPO process

Moore Threads has hired Citic Securities to start the ‘tutoring’ process as it seeks to capitalise on enthusiasm in China’s semiconductor industry

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Graphics processing unit designer Moore Threads is pursuing a potential public listing amid enthusiasm around progress in China’s chip industry. Photo: Moore Threads Technology

Published: 5:00pm, 13 Nov 2024

Chinese semiconductor start-up Moore Threads Intelligence Technology, helmed by a former Nvidia China executive, has started the process for an initial public offering (IPO), while enthusiasm in the chip industry remains high amid Beijing’s push for technological self-sufficiency.

The company, which specialises in designing graphics processing units (GPUs), has hired Chinese investment bank Citic Securities to start the pre-IPO “tutoring” process, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said in a statement Tuesday. It has not yet identified an exchange for the potential listing.

The move comes after the Beijing-based chipmaker changed its corporate status to a joint-stock company in late October. Its capital base increased at that time to 330 million yuan (US$46 million), up from 24 million yuan previously, according to data from corporate registry website Qichacha.

Moore Threads CEO James Zhang Jianzhong announces the MTT S4000 GPU on December 19, 2023. Photo: Handout

Moore Threads is joining rivals in pursuing an IPO at a time when optimism about progress in China’s chip industry remains high. Biren Technology and Enflame have also begun the tutoring process for listing on the mainland, as onshore capital markets court chip start-ups.

Meanwhile, Moore Threads has drawn the interest of private and government investors, benefiting from China’s growing self-sufficiency drive aimed at building the nation’s capabilities in manufacturing its own advanced chips.

The start-up raised more than 2 billion yuan from venture firms Houxue Capital and Pioneer Investment (China), car parts and internet video game maker Zhejiang Century Huatong Group and private equity firm Zhonghe Capital. The unicorn was valued at 77.42 billion yuan before the funding round, according to data from start-up investment tracker PitchBook.

Since its founding in 2020 by James Zhang Jianzhong, the former general manager of Nvidia’s China business, Moore Threads has received US$800 million in funding from over two dozen active investors, including Big Tech firms ByteDance and Tencent Holdings, venture firm HongShan and state-backed investment vehicle Beijing Zhongguancun Science City Innovation Development, according to PitchBook.