As the United States evaluates more stringent trade limitations to stop advanced chip technology from reaching China, U.S.-based chip manufacturer Nvidia is reportedly developing a version of its new artificial intelligence chips to align with these regulations.
According to reports, Nvidia is creating a version of its Blackwell AI chips for the Chinese market and will collaborate with local distributor Inspur for the launch and sale of the chip, tentatively named the “B20,” in China.
Sources indicate that the B20 is anticipated to begin shipping in the second quarter of 2025. Nvidia has not provided comments regarding this development.
The company has three chips specifically designed to meet U.S. export regulations, including the H20, which Nvidia reduced in price due to weak sales as it competes with chips from Chinese rival Huawei. However, sales of the H20 are reportedly on the rise, with Nvidia expected to sell over one million of these chips in China this year, generating approximately $12 billion in revenue, despite ongoing trade restrictions. This anticipated performance is nearly double the sales targets set by Huawei for its Ascend 910B chip, according to data from SemiAnalysis.
On another note, Nvidia’s H20 chips may face challenges under potential new U.S. trade regulations, according to analysts at Jefferies. They noted that during the upcoming annual assessment of semiconductor export controls in October, it is very likely that the H20 may be prohibited from being sold to China. Such a ban could occur through several methods, including a product-specific prohibition, a reduction in the computing power limit, or imposing restrictions on memory capacity.
Additionally, the U.S. may expand export controls on chips sold to other countries in the region, like Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or even target overseas companies linked to China, although the latter would be more complex to implement, analysts suggested.