The 3.2 GHz server chip, built using the open-source RISC-V architecture, was unveiled as “the world’s highest-performing RISC-V CPU” at a conference hosted by DAMO Academy, Alibaba’s research division, according to Chinese media reports.
The chip is more than three times faster than its predecessor, the XuanTie C920, the reports said.
The company did not disclose which factory (fab) manufactured the chip.

“The open standard nature of RISC-V allows chip designers to customize instruction sets and accelerate AI-specific workloads with zero or low license fees. This is particularly important for the development of AI agents,” the blog post notes.

Alibaba is accelerating in-house chip development through its T-Head semiconductor division, focusing on the Zhenwu 810E series of chips for AI training and inference, while the XuanTie series is geared towards high-performance cloud systems and agentive AI.

This move comes after Alibaba launched Wukong last week, its enterprise platform optimized for AI agent workflows, as companies and institutions across China adopt OpenClaw.

Its international equivalent, Accio Work, was launched on Monday. The agentive AI platform claims it can autonomously execute complex business operations for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The company reorganized some of its AI-focused teams under the newly created Alibaba Token Hub earlier this month, which focuses on building AI-based work platforms for businesses.

This change in business strategy comes as Alibaba seeks new ways to ensure profitability, in a context where prices for Chinese AI model tokens have fallen sharply due to intense domestic competition.