As the United States contemplates stricter trade measures to stop advanced chip technology from reaching China, Nvidia, a leading U.S.-based chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a new version of its artificial intelligence chips to align with these regulations.
According to reports, Nvidia is creating a variant of its Blackwell AI chips specifically for the Chinese market. The company is expected to collaborate with a local partner, Inspur, to introduce and distribute the chip, which is tentatively named the “B20,” in China. It is anticipated that shipments of the B20 will commence in the second quarter of 2025.
Nvidia has already designed three chips to meet U.S. export requirements, including the H20 chip, which the company lowered prices for due to lagging sales against local competitor Huawei. Reports indicate that H20 sales have begun to increase, with Nvidia projected to sell over one million H20 chips in China this year, generating approximately $12 billion in revenue despite current trade barriers.
However, analysts from Jefferies have warned that Nvidia’s H20 chips could face new restrictions under upcoming U.S. trade regulations. The annual review of U.S. semiconductor export controls set for October may lead to a ban on H20 sales to China. This ban could be implemented in several ways, such as a specific product ban, tightening computing power limits, or capping memory capacity.
Additionally, the U.S. may expand its export restrictions to encompass chips sold to other countries in the region, including Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or consider extending these controls to overseas Chinese firms, although this could present more challenges according to analysts.