As the U.S. contemplates stricter trade measures to prevent advanced chip technology from reaching China, Nvidia, the American semiconductor giant, is reportedly developing a version of its new artificial intelligence chips to adhere to these regulations.
According to unconfirmed sources, Nvidia is focusing on a modified version of its Blackwell AI chips for the Chinese market, with plans to collaborate with local distributor Inspur to launch the chip, which is tentatively named the “B20.” The B20 is anticipated to begin shipping in the second quarter of 2025.
Nvidia has already designed three chips to comply with U.S. export controls, including the H20 model, which the company had reduced prices for in response to sluggish sales to better compete with domestic rival Huawei. However, reports indicate that sales of the H20 are now on the rise, with Nvidia projected to sell over one million units in China this year, valued at approximately $12 billion, despite ongoing U.S. trade restrictions.
In contrast, Huawei’s sales forecasts for its Ascend 910B chip are considerably lower, according to SemiAnalysis data.
Nevertheless, analysts from Jefferies have cautioned that the H20 chips may face challenges under potential new U.S. trade regulations. They anticipate that during the upcoming annual review of semiconductor export controls in October, the H20 could be prohibited for sale to China through various means, including a product-specific ban or adjustments to computing power and memory capacity limitations.
There is also a possibility that the U.S. could broaden its export restrictions to include chips sold to other countries in the region, such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or to overseas Chinese firms, though the latter may be more challenging to enforce, according to industry analysts.