Sberbank is planning to power its GigaChat neural network with Chinese chips, the bank's chief executive Herman Gref said in a televised interview on Channel One. Gref is part of the Russian delegation accompanying President Vladimir Putin on his official state visit to China.

Chinese components are not yet used in GigaChat's infrastructure, Gref acknowledged, but the bank hopes to integrate them over time. "Not yet. But we hope that gradually we will be able to use Chinese chips in GigaChat as well," he said, adding that technology and artificial intelligence would feature prominently in the day's discussions with Chinese counterparts.

The backdrop is clear: Russia has fallen significantly behind the US and China in the AI race, largely because Western sanctions have cut off access to advanced chips and related technologies. Chinese processors have emerged as the primary alternative.

VEB.RF chief Igor Shuvalov confirmed that chip procurement was on the agenda in talks with Chinese partners, but declined to elaborate. "It's hardly worth talking about in the current environment. We don't name our partners, we don't name specific deals — but there is a great deal of work underway," he said.

China is also showing interest in building data centres on Russian soil. Russian Direct Investment Fund chief Kirill Dmitriev pointed to what he described as Russia's key competitive advantage: the cheapest energy in the world for AI infrastructure. Northern regions are particularly attractive, he noted, as the cold climate eliminates the need for expensive cooling systems. The RDIF has already completed more than 50 joint projects with Chinese partners worth over 800 billion rubles and is now in discussions on new AI-focused initiatives in Russia.

The Russian government included the construction of eight large-scale data centres in its national infrastructure development plan through 2036, approved last year.