As the U.S. deliberates on stricter trade measures to inhibit the transfer of advanced chip technology to China, Nvidia, a prominent U.S.-based chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a new version of its artificial intelligence chips that adhere to these potential regulations.
Nvidia is said to be collaborating with local partner Inspur to launch a chip, tentatively named the “B20,” specifically designed for the Chinese market. According to sources, the B20 is expected to start shipping in the second quarter of 2025, though Nvidia has not commented on these developments.
The company has already introduced three chips tailored to comply with U.S. export controls, including the H20, which saw a price reduction amid sluggish sales attributed to competition from Huawei’s domestic offerings. Nevertheless, reports indicate that sales of the H20 chips are now on the rise, with Nvidia projected to sell over one million units in China this year, amounting to around $12 billion, even with U.S. trade restrictions in place. This figure is nearly double the sales expectations for Huawei’s Ascend 910B chip, according to data from SemiAnalysis.
However, Jefferies analysts have cautioned that Nvidia’s H20 chips may face restrictions under new U.S. trade regulations. In their annual review of semiconductor export controls scheduled for October, the analysts suggest that a ban on the H20 for sale to China is highly probable. This ban could be implemented in several ways, including a specific prohibition on the product, a reduction in computing power limits, or caps on memory capacity.
Additionally, the U.S. government may expand export restrictions to chips distributed in other Southeast Asian nations, such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or even impose limitations on Chinese companies operating overseas, though implementing such measures may prove more challenging, according to analysts.