On April 7, news emerged that China has developed its own alternative to HDMI and DisplayPort.
Recently, the Shenzhen 8K Ultra HD Video Industry Cooperation Alliance, composed of over 50 Chinese companies, released the jointly developed GPMI (General Purpose Media Interface), which solves the problem of traditional display devices requiring separate power and data cables. Using just one cable, it supports up to 192Gbps bandwidth and 480W power supply capacity.
Current issues include inconsistent interface standards across devices and single-function interfaces, where functions like audio/video transmission, data transfer, network connectivity, control signal transmission, and power supply require multiple interfaces or cables, leading to complex device connections and poor user experience.
In 2019, the Shenzhen International 8K Ultra HD Video Industry Cooperation Alliance established the Ultra HD Interface Working Group, officially launching GPMI technical research and development.
In 2021, a draft version of the core group standard was released for public consultation. In 2023, the first FPGA prototype was unveiled. 2024 marked a milestone: a draft industry standard was released for public consultation, and more than 50 industry chain enterprises, including Huawei, Skyworth, and Hisense, jointly released the industrial roadmap.
In December of the same year, GPMI obtained the SVID (0XFF10) authorized by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), achieving deep integration with the Type-C ecosystem.
On February 28, 2025, five series of group standards for the “General Purpose Media Interface (GPMI) Specification” were released, marking the establishment of a unified, standardized, more compatible, and forward-looking standard system in the field of general multimedia interfaces in China.
Compared with existing interface technologies, GPMI has seven core advantages: bidirectional multi-stream, bidirectional control, high-power supply, ecosystem compatibility, ultra-fast transmission, quick wake-up, and end-to-end security.
It is understood that the GPMI interface aims for single-cable connectivity, integrating four functions—audio/video, data, control, and power supply—through a single interface. It supports 8K ultra-high-definition video transmission and uses daisy-chain networking technology to connect multiple devices in a single chain via one cable. This reduces installation costs in scenarios such as multi-device setups at home (speakers, gaming consoles, etc.) and outdoor video wall installations, while achieving low latency and high image quality.
