As the United States evaluates stricter trade measures to prevent advanced chip technologies from reaching China, Nvidia, a prominent U.S. chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a version of its new artificial intelligence chips that complies with these potential regulations.
According to sources familiar with the situation, Nvidia is collaborating with a local partner, Inspur, to introduce and market a chip unofficially named the “B20” in China. It is anticipated that the B20 will begin shipping in the second quarter of 2025, although Nvidia has not provided any comments on the matter.
Nvidia has already created three types of chips specifically designed to adhere to U.S. export controls, including the H20 chip. In a bid to remain competitive against domestic rival Huawei, Nvidia reduced the prices of the H20 due to lackluster sales. However, recent reports indicate that sales of the H20 are beginning to increase. Nvidia is projected to sell over one million H20 chips in China this year, generating approximately $12 billion in revenue, despite existing U.S. trade restrictions. This sales forecast is nearly double that of Huawei’s expected sales for its Ascend 910B chip.
However, analysts from Jeffries have warned that Nvidia’s H20 chips may face risks under potential new U.S. trade regulations. With the U.S. set to review semiconductor export controls in October, there is a strong likelihood that sales of the H20 to China could be prohibited. Analysts suggest that such a ban might be implemented through various mechanisms, including a product-specific ban, lowering computational power limits, or capping memory capacity.
Moreover, the U.S. might consider extending export controls on chips sold to neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or even targeting overseas Chinese companies, although the latter would be more challenging to carry out, according to industry analysts.