As the United States evaluates stricter trade regulations aimed at preventing the flow of advanced chip technology to China, Nvidia, an American chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a variant of its new artificial intelligence chips that aligns with these rules.
According to Reuters, Nvidia is creating a version of its Blackwell AI chips specifically for the Chinese market, collaborating with local distributor Inspur to introduce the chip, provisionally named the “B20.” Reports suggest that the B20 is set to begin shipping in the second quarter of 2025, although Nvidia has not provided any official comment on the matter.
Nvidia currently has three chips designed to meet U.S. export controls, including the H20, which was recently subject to price reductions due to sluggish sales in order to compete with domestic rival Huawei. However, sources indicate that H20 sales are now increasing, with expectations that Nvidia will sell over one million H20 chips in China this year, generating approximately $12 billion in revenue, despite existing U.S. trade barriers. This estimated sales figure is nearly double that of Huawei’s anticipated sales for its Ascend 910B chip.
However, Nvidia’s H20 chips may face challenges if the U.S. tightens trade regulations, according to analysts at Jefferies. They anticipate that during the annual review of semiconductor export controls in October, there is a significant possibility that the H20 could be prohibited for sale to China. Potential methods for implementing this ban may include a specific product ban, reducing the computing power cap, or limiting memory capacity.
Additionally, the U.S. may broaden its export control measures to include chips shipped to neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or restrict sales to overseas Chinese firms, though the latter would likely be more challenging to enact.