As the United States evaluates stricter trade measures to prevent advanced chip technology from reaching China, Nvidia, a prominent U.S.-based chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a version of its new artificial intelligence chips that aligns with these potential regulations.
According to sources cited by Reuters, Nvidia is collaborating with the local distributor Inspur to introduce a chip, tentatively named the “B20,” into the Chinese market. This new chip is expected to begin shipping in the second quarter of 2025, although Nvidia has chosen not to comment on the matter.
Nvidia has already released three chip models that are designed to comply with existing U.S. export regulations, including the H20 chip, which the company reduced prices for due to sluggish sales in the face of competition from Chinese rival Huawei. Despite initial challenges, H20 sales have reportedly begun to increase. Estimates suggest that Nvidia could sell over one million H20 chips in China this year, potentially generating around $12 billion in revenue, as noted by the Financial Times and supported by SemiAnalysis data. This anticipated sales figure is nearly double what Huawei expects for its Ascend 910B chip.
However, the H20 chips may face future risks due to impending U.S. trade regulations. Analysts at Jefferies have indicated that during the annual review of semiconductor export controls in October, it is quite likely that the H20 chip will be banned from sale to China. They outlined three possible modes for this ban: a specific product ban, a reduction in the computing power threshold, or a restriction on memory capacity.
The U.S. may also consider extending its export controls to chips sold to other Southeast Asian nations like Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or to overseas Chinese companies, though analysts predict that enforcing such measures could be more complex.