As the United States contemplates stricter trade measures to prevent advanced chip technology from being exported to China, Nvidia, a prominent U.S.-based chip manufacturer, is reportedly developing a modified version of its latest artificial intelligence chips to meet these regulations.
Nvidia is working on a variant of its new Blackwell AI chips specifically for the Chinese market, according to Reuters, which cited unnamed sources familiar with the situation. The company is expected to collaborate with local distributor Inspur to introduce and market the chip, provisionally named the “B20,” in China.
Sources indicate that the B20 is anticipated to begin shipping in the second quarter of 2025. Nvidia has chosen not to provide any comment on the matter.
Nvidia currently has three chips that are designed to adhere to U.S. export restrictions, including the H20 chip, for which the company has recently lowered prices due to lagging sales in order to compete with Huawei’s locally manufactured chips. Reports indicate that sales of the H20 chip are now increasing, with Nvidia projected to sell over one million units in China this year, totaling around $12 billion in value, despite existing U.S. trade limitations. This expected sales volume is nearly double Huawei’s anticipated sales for its Ascend 910B chip.
However, analysts from Jeffries have cautioned that Nvidia’s H20 chips may face challenges under potential new U.S. trade regulations. Analysts noted that during the U.S. annual review of semiconductor export controls this October, there is a significant likelihood that the sale of the H20 chip will be prohibited for the Chinese market. This ban could be implemented in several ways, such as a specific product ban, a reduction in the computing power threshold, or limitations on memory capacity.
Additionally, U.S. authorities might also extend export controls to chips supplied to other countries in the region, including Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, or even to foreign Chinese companies, although the latter would likely be more complex to enforce, as per analysts’ insights.