Chinese AI chip startup Biren Technology aims to launch a Hong Kong initial public offering in the coming weeks, four sources with knowledge of the matter said.

The IPO could raise US$300 million (HK$2.34 billion), local Chinese media reported. One of the sources confirmed the number to Reuters.

The Shanghai-based company, along with other domestic rivals, is banking on rapid growth as China seeks to develop domestic alternatives to U.S. semiconductors amid stringent export restrictions by Washington on advanced chips.

Biren could kick off the offering as early as this month and debut in January, said two of the sources.

According to a Monday notice from the China Securities Regulatory Commission, Biren plans to issue up to 372.5 million shares in Hong Kong and its shareholders will convert 873.3 million onshore shares into Hong Kong-listed stock.

The sources declined to be identified as the information was confidential. Biren did not respond to a Reuters query for comment.

CHINA'S CHIP AMBITIONS

Beijing has prioritised building homegrown champions in graphics processing units, which are critical for artificial intelligence development.

The planned IPO would follow successful offerings from industry peers Moore Threads and MetaX that were thousands of times oversubscribed.

Moore Threads' shares soared over 400 percent in its December 5 Shanghai debut.

Founded in 2019, Biren's co-founders include Zhang Wen, formerly a president at leading AI face-recognition company SenseTime (0020), and Jiao Guofang, who previously worked at Qualcomm and Huawei.

The company initially drew attention in 2022 when it unveiled a first batch of products, including its BR100 chip, which it claimed could match the performance of Nvidia's advanced H100 AI processor.

However, the company was added to the U.S. 'Entity List' in 2023, preventing it from using leading global foundry TSMC to manufacture its chips.

Biren was valued at approximately 14 billion yuan (HK$15.6 billion) prior to a funding round in the first half of 2025, when it raised about 1.5 billion yuan from investors including the Guangdong and Shanghai governments, Reuters reported in June.

Its other investors include Qiming Venture Partners, IDG Capital, the venture arm of Hillhouse Investment, Russia-China Investment Fund, as well as Country Garden Venture Capital and New World Group, its website showed.

Bank of China International, CICC (3908) and Ping An Securities are the lead banks on the deal, the sources said.

Ping An declined to comment while the other two banks did not respond to requests for comment.

REUTERS

China AI chip firm Biren to launch Hong Kong IPO in coming weeks, sources say