As the United States mulls over stricter trade measures to prevent advanced chip technology from being supplied to China, Nvidia, a major American chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a modified version of its new artificial intelligence chips to meet these regulations.
According to a report by Reuters, Nvidia is collaborating with a local distribution partner, Inspur, to introduce and market a chip tentatively named the “B20” in the Chinese market. This new chip is expected to be available by the second quarter of 2025.
Despite ongoing U.S. trade restrictions, Nvidia has designed three of its chips, including the H20, specifically to abide by American export controls. The company recently reduced prices for the H20 in response to sluggish sales, competing against domestically produced chips from Huawei. However, it has been reported that sales of the H20 are beginning to improve, with projections indicating that Nvidia could sell over one million units in China this year, generating approximately $12 billion.
However, concerns persist regarding the future of Nvidia’s H20 chips under potential new U.S. trade regulations. Analysts from Jefferies suggest that during the annual review of U.S. semiconductor export controls this October, it is quite probable that the H20 may face a sales ban to China. Possible restrictions could manifest in several ways, including specific product bans or adjustments to limits on computing power or memory capacity.
Furthermore, there is speculation that export controls could be expanded to include chips sold to other regional countries, such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or even to foreign Chinese companies, although the latter would present greater implementation challenges.