Shanghai-based chip firm MetaX Integrated Circuits has emerged as the latest star in mainland China’s stock market, with the graphics processing unit (GPU) maker proving to be even more popular among retail investors than peer Moore Threads ahead of its trading debut.
Founded in 2020 and viewed as one of China’s best hopes to develop chips that can rival Nvidia’s high-performance AI processors, MetaX plans to raise 4.2 billion yuan (US$594 million) through its initial public offering (IPO). It set its offer price at 104.66 yuan per share, implying a valuation of around 41.9 billion yuan.
The offering’s popularity underscores how China’s drive for tech self-sufficiency, especially in semiconductors, is fuelling a frenzy for local chip stocks. Amid the intensified US-China tech war, enthusiastic mainland investors are flocking to the sector in search of returns.
MetaX’s flagship general-purpose processor, the C600, launched in July, integrates HBM3e high-bandwidth memory and supports FP8 precision, a format that allows faster AI model training with lower power use. Mass production of the “fully domestically produced” chip would start in the first half of 2026, the company said.
The chip designer counts prominent venture-capital firms as early investors, including HongShan Capital Group (formerly Sequoia China), Matrix Partners China, CTC Capital, ZhenFund and Lightspeed China Partners, along with state-linked investors including the Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Fund and the Pudong District Fund.
