The Malian GPU and hardware ray tracing
Huawei has released new details on the Kirin 9050 chip, presented as the first component based on the technology the company calls “logic folding” τ. According to a report by IT之家, the manufacturer outlined the features of the new Malian GPU and the AI-integrated ISP. This is information released by the company itself and reported by the outlet, not independent measurements.
The Malian GPU uses a fourth-generation microarchitecture. Huawei claims a 40% performance increase and a 45% reduction in power consumption compared with the previous generation. The chip also supports second-generation hardware ray tracing, with a claimed performance improvement of 78%. The listed features include units dedicated to accelerating ray tracing calculations, a BVH unit for real-time reconstruction of geometric structures, hardware acceleration for intersection calculations, described as patented, and a pipeline for ambient occlusion.
On the visual rendering side, the Kirin 9050 supports AI-based super resolution and HDR enhancement, as well as features described as separation between control and display and on-device 3D reconstruction. Huawei states that the Malian API is designed to integrate closely with the HarmonyOS operating system.
The ISP with a pixel-dedicated NPU
The new generation of AI ISP integrates an NPU dedicated to pixel processing that works in parallel with the general-purpose NPU. The chip supports real-time 4K video processing at 60 frames per second and, according to Huawei, enables fusion of images up to 200 megapixels for the first time.
The photography feature package includes high dynamic range video up to 18EV, an engine for high-resolution telephoto photography, single-pixel-level portrait optimizations, and coverage of the entire processing chain in the BT.2020 color space. These are specifications claimed by the company, which IT之家 reports without citing independent tests or measurements.
What is confirmed and what remains to be verified
The picture that emerges is of a chip designed to concentrate graphics, photography, and artificial intelligence capabilities on a single component, with particular attention to integration with HarmonyOS. The choice of a separate NPU for pixels, alongside the general-purpose one, suggests an architecture that distributes the load between image processing and neural computation.
All percentage figures and features described come from official Huawei communications reported by the specialized press. The material provides no information on commercial devices that will carry the chip, prices, availability, or independent test results. The claimed performance, in particular the 40% increase and 45% reduction in power consumption, will need to be verified on real products before being considered a reliable benchmark.
