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Chinese Supercomputer Tops Global Speed Ranking Without U.S. Chips
LineShine achieved the highest score on the TOP500 list with 2,198 exaflops using only domestically produced CPUs. The system runs on 45,000 LX2 processors and consumes 42.2 megawatts.
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A Chinese supercomputer called LineShine recorded the highest performance on the latest TOP500 ranking, surpassing the previous leader by more than 20 percent. The machine reached 2,198 exaflops while drawing 42.2 megawatts and operates without graphics processing units.
It uses roughly 45,000 LX2 central processing units, each with 304 cores running at 1.55 GHz, linked by the LingQi network and running the Kylin operating system.
LineShine is built entirely on the LingKun platform with hardware and software developed inside China. The absence of GPUs marks a departure from most recent top-ranked systems, which rely on specialized accelerators for scientific workloads. The TOP500 list, issued twice a year since 1993, ranks machines by standardized benchmarks that measure theoretical speed, sustained performance, and energy efficiency.
El Capitan in Livermore, California, had held the top spot since 2024.
U.S. export controls on advanced chips and related software have been in place since the first Trump administration and continued under subsequent administrations. Chinese authorities responded with reciprocal limits on certain components. LineShine demonstrates that domestic alternatives can reach leading performance levels under these constraints, according to the benchmark results reported by Wired.
