As the United States contemplates stricter trade restrictions to prevent advanced chip technology from being exported to China, Nvidia, a key American chipmaker, is reportedly developing a specialized version of its latest artificial intelligence chips to align with these regulations.
According to reports from Reuters, Nvidia is working on its new Blackwell AI chips for the Chinese market, collaborating with local distributor Inspur to market the chip, tentatively dubbed the “B20.” It is anticipated that shipments of the B20 will commence in the second quarter of 2025, although Nvidia has refrained from confirming these details.
The company already offers three chips designed to conform to U.S. export controls, including the H20, which saw price reductions in response to weak sales in order to remain competitive against domestic rival Huawei. However, reports indicate that sales of the H20 are on the rise, with estimates suggesting that Nvidia is on track to sell over one million H20 chips in China this year, valuing around $12 billion, despite existing trade restrictions. This projected sales figure is nearly double what Huawei expects for its Ascend 910B chip.
Nonetheless, analysts from Jefferies have flagged potential risks for Nvidia’s H20 chips under evolving U.S. trade policies. During the annual review of semiconductor export controls scheduled for October, it is likely that the H20 could face a sales ban to China, which could materialize in several forms, including a specific product ban, reductions in computing power thresholds, or limitations on memory capacity.
Moreover, experts suggest that the U.S. might extend its export control measures to chips sold to other countries in the region, such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or impose restrictions on overseas Chinese companies, though such measures would present greater challenges in implementation.