Alibaba Group Holding’s chip design unit T-Head has more than tripled its capital base, as the tech giant doubles down on efforts to become a domestic semiconductor powerhouse amid the artificial intelligence boom and China’s chip self-sufficiency drive.

Shanghai-headquartered T-Head last week increased its registered capital to 1 billion yuan (US$148 million) from 300 million yuan, according to information released by Chinese corporate registry data provider Qichacha.

The capital injection, the first in more than three years, comes as Alibaba reiterates its commitment to building a full-stack AI infrastructure, integrating T-Head’s bespoke chips with its Alibaba Cloud operations and Qwen foundational models.

It also coincides with the company’s plan to spin off the chip design unit, as a renewed frenzy to fund semiconductor development in China gathers pace.

Founded in 2018, T-Head has maintained a low profile over the past few years, with few clues regarding its technological advances. Alibaba has become more vocal about the unit this year as it places chips at the centre of its AI strategy. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.

In early 2023, T-Head increased its registered capital to 300 million yuan from 10 million yuan, according to Chinese media reports at the time, citing data from Tianyancha, another corporate data provider.