TIME has named He Tingbo, President of HiSilicon, Huawei's semiconductor division, to its 2026 TIME100 AI list, recognizing her as one of the most influential people in artificial intelligence. The annual list, now in its fourth year, honors leaders, innovators, shapers, and thinkers who are shaping the future of AI. He Tingbo's inclusion underscores her role in advancing AI computing through her leadership at HiSilicon and her recent proposal of a new scaling law for semiconductors.
In May 2026, at the IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems in Shanghai, He Tingbo unveiled the "Tau (τ) Scaling Law," a concept that suggests replacing the geometric shrinking of Moore's Law with time-based scaling as a guiding principle for semiconductors and the electronic systems built on them. This proposal is significant because Moore's Law, which has driven the semiconductor industry for decades, is approaching physical limits. The Tau Scaling Law offers an alternative framework that could enable continued progress in computing performance, particularly for AI applications that demand ever-increasing processing power.
Under He Tingbo's leadership over the past decade, HiSilicon has built a competitive edge in AI computing, developing products such as Ascend AI accelerators, Kunpeng server processors, and UnifiedBus-enabled SuperPoD systems. These technologies are designed to support large-scale AI workloads, from training complex models to deploying them at scale, and they form the backbone of Huawei's AI infrastructure offerings. The recognition from TIME highlights how HiSilicon's work is not only commercially significant but also pivotal to the broader evolution of AI hardware.
The TIME100 AI list was compiled by TIME's editors and reporters, who examined the key stories in AI over the past year and consulted with expert sources and industry leaders for recommendations. The selection process aims to identify individuals whose contributions have had a measurable impact on the development and deployment of AI technologies. He Tingbo's inclusion reflects the growing importance of semiconductor design in the AI ecosystem, as the demand for specialized chips continues to rise.
The implications of He Tingbo's recognition extend beyond personal achievement. It signals a broader acknowledgment that the future of AI is not solely dependent on algorithms and data but also on the underlying hardware innovations that make AI systems more efficient and capable. The Tau Scaling Law, if widely adopted, could influence how the industry approaches chip design, potentially leading to more sustainable and scalable AI infrastructure. As AI continues to permeate every sector, from healthcare to autonomous vehicles, the work of engineers like He Tingbo will be critical in overcoming the physical and economic barriers to progress.
He Tingbo's story is part of the larger narrative of AI's evolution, where breakthroughs in hardware are as important as breakthroughs in software. By naming her to the TIME100 AI list, TIME acknowledges that the people behind the silicon are as influential as those behind the algorithms. For those interested in learning more, He Tingbo's profile is available at TIME100 AI: He Tingbo, and the full list can be viewed at TIME100 AI 2026.
