BIREN Technology aims to raise up to HK$4.9 billion (US$630 million) in a Hong Kong initial public offering, becoming the third Chinese graphics processing unit (GPU) maker to pursue a listing after Moore Threads Technology and MetaX Integrated Circuits, the Shanghai-based company, which is vying for market share from Nvidia, announced Monday.

The move underscores growing momentum among domestic GPU developers to tap capital markets as demand for artificial intelligence (AI) computing accelerates. Biren plans to issue 247.7 million shares at an indicative price range of HK$17 to HK$19.6 per share, translating into total proceeds of between HK$4.2 billion and HK$4.9 billion, according to its latest prospectus filed with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The company is scheduled to debut on the exchange Jan. 2 next year. Of the funds raised, 85% will be allocated to research and development of intelligent computing solutions. This includes 45% earmarked for hardware development, covering upgrades to existing products and the development of next-generation general-purpose GPU chips, and 40% for software platform development, including the expansion of AI training and inference models. The remainder will be used for commercialization and general corporate purposes, the prospectus said.

Founded in 2019, Biren focuses on general-purpose GPUs and GPU-based intelligent computing solutions that provide foundational computing power for AI applications. Heavy research and development spending has kept the company in the red. In the first half of this year, Biren posted a net loss of 1.6 billion yuan (US$227.3 million), up 80% from a year earlier, while revenue rose 50% year on year to 58.9 million yuan, according to the filing.

(SD-Agencies)