Sunzhan, founded in 2022 and still around twenty people, builds custom RISC-V processor cores (CPU, DSP, NPU) for domain-specific architectures. Founder Zeng Yi argues that AI has moved the decision over chip architecture out of the chip company and into the AI company: the model now dictates the silicon, and RISC-V’s freedom to add custom instructions is what lets that happen. Qualcomm, Tesla, Google, Meta and Intel have all moved toward RISC-V for next-generation AI processors.
Sunzhan’s bet is that AI platformises chip design. Its engines already use AI to generate schemes, and Zeng wants to build the “Claude Code of processors”, where AI drafts a DSA core from a spec. He is blunt that the goal is to put customers on the “pirate ship”: lock-in comes from the value of customisation, not from coercion.
RISC-V grows by reverse penetration
Zeng does not expect RISC-V to storm servers head-on. ARM rose by catching a new opportunity, the phone, not by taking Intel’s turf; RISC-V’s opening is the wave of AI processors that then seep back into servers, PCs and phones. He sees the DPU as a weaker market than the NPU, where sacrificing generality buys far higher inference throughput per watt.
On fragmentation, Zeng flips the usual worry: ARM’s uniformity is homogeneity, and RISC-V’s splits are differentiation. The risk is quality of the supporting compiler, so Sunzhan replaces hand-rolled RTL with a tool platform that auto-generates compiler, code and verification, hitting 98 to 100 per cent coverage. The firm runs both IP and EDA, like Synopsys and Cadence, and targets a third of the RISC-V market by 2030.
First-half revenue already matches last full year, and Zeng expects to double. Sunzhan calls itself the DSA leader in China and plans an overseas push within two years.
Editor’s note: This is an adapted translation of the original LeiFeng Network report. It has been trimmed and restructured for readability for an international business audience.