Hygon’s chips ‘safe’ from AMD security flaw amid China’s tech self-reliance drive

Chips from Chinese semiconductor designer Hygon Information Technology were found unaffected by a recently disclosed vulnerability in products developed by its US tech licenser and former joint venture partner Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), according to analysts, which showed progress in China’s self-reliance drive.Hygon’s central processing units (CPUs), which were developed under a licence to use AMD’s X86-based Zen chip architecture, did not have the hardware security flaw that affected a range of AMD artificial intelligence chips that were widely installed in various data centres and cloud infrastructure operations, according to Chen Bingxin, an analyst at semiconductors consultancy JW Insights.Chen attributed that result to Hygon’s years of investments in redesigning AMD’s chip architecture with self-developed innovations.It underscored efforts by Chinese chip designers to become less exposed to Western technology risks.AMD and Hygon did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.Hygon’s successful initiative to diverge from AMD’s original chip architecture marked a milestone in China, where developers are pushing for increased autonomy in core technology and security for locally designed semiconductors, according to JW Insights’ Chen.Advanced Micro Devices chair and CEO Lisa Su shows the company’s EPYC “Venice” graphics processing unit during a press conference ahead of the opening of the CES trade show in Las Vegas on January 5, 2026. Photo: AFP