# China's AI chip startup boom cools as talent salaries keep rising

> Original title: 三个月估值涨十倍的芯片热潮里，5000万也没让他创业

- Source: Leiphone
- Published: 2026-11-11T02:51:00.000Z
- Bad Influence: https://badinfluence.news/items/t6vhj8o3zw015811orjo77xfp
- Original: https://www.leiphone.com/category/chipdesign/6mjibhXfWFoLrabg.html

## Summary

Chinese AI chip investment has started to cool in the second half of 2026, while engineering talent salaries continue to climb. A senior investor says AI, computing power and related chips and infrastructure were the sectors that heated up in 2026, while many non-AI semiconductor assets cooled. Two-year NPU engineers can earn around 700,000 yuan, and three-year engineers around 900,000 yuan, according to recruiters.