November 14, 2025, Hong Kong, China – StarFive today officially launched the “Lion Rock” chip, the first data center management chip based on the RISC-V architecture. As a milestone product, the “Lion Rock” chip has successfully achieved the first large-scale commercial implementation of RISC-V in the data center field, injecting new core momentum to the development of China’s computing infrastructure.

With Key Partners’ Strong Support, RISC-V Achieves Breakthrough in Large-Scale Data Center Commercialization

StarFive and xFusion jointly held the delivery ceremony for the “Lion Rock” chip at the launch event, setting an exemplary model of collaboration between an original chip manufacturer and a system application provider. Taking this delivery as a new staring point, both parties will further advance the commercial expansion of the “Lion Rock” chip and deepen their multi-dimensional cooperation in the data center field.

Carry Forward the “Lion Rock Spirit”: Shaping a New Paradigm for Hong Kong’s Tech Rise

The “Lion Rock” chip is named after Hong Kong’s celebrated “Lion Rock Spirit” — relentless self-improvement and perseverance. The creation of this chip not only represents a technological breakthrough but also greatly benefits from Hong Kong’s open, cooperative, and inclusive innovation ecosystem.

Reflecting on its development journey, StarFive’s growth has been closely tied to Hong Kong’s capital support. Thomas Xu noted: “In 2019, Dr. Peter Lee Ka-kit became StarFive’s founding shareholder, driven by his profound insight into technology and firm belief in the chip industry. Earlier this year, strategic investment from HKIC further injected new momentum into our growth, expanding our strategic footprint.”

Dr Peter Lee Ka-kit, Principal of Full Vision Capital, said: “As global technological competition intensifies, chip technology has become a core focus. The era driven by technology that will completely change how human society operates is about to arrive. To maintain its leading position, Hong Kong must continue to develop high technology and encourage innovation. The successful development of the “Lion Rock” chip adds Hong Kong’s strength to this mission, and I am extremely proud!”

Clara Chan, CEO of the Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited stated:”In March this year, the HKIC announced our investment in StarFive. Today, this investment already yielded tangible outcome. The ‘Lion Rock Chip’ not only represents a breakthrough in key technologies but also has gained market recognition as well as customer support and is moving towards mass production. As the world’s first data center management chip developed based on RISC-V architecture, the ‘Lion Rock Chip’ is a testament of the HKIC’s investment direction, namely ‘having Hong Kong as home, our nation as foundation, and the world as vision,’ and our firm determination to support our nation’s technological self-reliance and self-strengthening.”

Unlock Data Center Management Potential with RISC-V Core Technology

As demand for computing power surges, the industry urgently requires data center solutions that are more cost-effective, energy-sustainable, and secure. Serving as the foundational pillar for large-scale computing clusters, data center management chips are now facing unprecedented growth opportunities. StarFive leverages this critical segment to fully exploit its RISC-V innovation capabilities.

At the core of its technology, the “Lion Rock” chip features StarFive’s self-developed high-performance RISC-V CPU cores and the coherent Network-on-Chip (NoC) architecture, delivering exceptional performance and energy efficiency. Thomas Xu emphasized that the RISC-V core adheres to an open philosophy, enabling customers to expand functions and customize development according to their specific applications.

“If we compare a data center to a smart building, where GPUs and CPUs function as functional units, then the ‘Lion Rock’ chip serves as the property management hub — comprehensively overseeing system security, power scheduling, and operational maintenance to ensure the entire building operates efficiently and stably,” expressed Thomas Xu, Chairman and CEO of StarFive, regarding the positioning of the “Lion Rock” chip.

Liu Hongyun, Chairman and CEO of xFusion, stated at the event: “The computing power business is xFusion’s global core foundation, and building stable data center management chips is crucial. We chose the ‘Lion Rock’ chip because it is built based on the open RISC-V architecture; it is fully compliant with rigorous performance standards; and it has got strong support from the Hong Kong government and Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited. This chip will be widely applied in various scenarios such as AI servers, edge computing, and smart energy, contributing to building a more intelligent, green, and secure computing power infrastructure. In the future, xFusion will continue to work with partners to promote the development of the RISC-V ecosystem and embrace the era of intelligent agents.”

In terms of technology integration and ecosystem co-construction, StarFive has received significant support from Intel, paving the way for the “Lion Rock” chip to enter the mainstream data center market. He Jiawei, General Manager of Intel China’s Data Center Group and AI Sales Division, said: “We are optimistic about the market prospects of this new chip launched by StarFive and have full confidence in the remarkable achievements it has accomplished. Intel has always adhered to an open ecosystem philosophy. We will work closely with StarFive and other innovative partners to collectively push the computing boundaries and deliver more exceptional experiences to global users.”

Looking ahead, StarFive will continue to embrace the “Lion Rock Spirit” as its core driving force and leverage RISC-V as its technological foundation, contributing to Hong Kong’s journey toward technological self-reliance. As Thomas Xu noted: “We will use the successful practice of the “Lion Rock” chip as a blueprint to expand the RISC-V ecosystem to more cities.”