Nvidia prepares to launch a downgraded version of its H20 expert system chip for China in the next two months, following U.S.
export restrictions on the initial design, three sources acquainted with the matter informed Reuters.The U.S.
chipmaker has informed significant Chinese clients, including leading cloud computing suppliers, that it aims to release the customized H20 chip in July, two of the sources said.The downgraded H20 represents Nvidias newest effort to maintain its presence in one of its most vital markets in the face of Washingtons expanding efforts to limit Chinas access to sophisticated semiconductor technology.The H20, which had been Nvidias most effective AI chip cleared for Chinese sales, was effectively blocked from the marketplace after U.S.
authorities informed the company last month that the product would require an export license.Nvidia has actually created brand-new technical limits, which will assist the advancement of the modified chip designs.
These requirements will result in significant downgrades from the original H20, including substantially decreased memory capacity, one of the sources said.Another of the sources said downstream clients might potentially modify the module configuration to change the chips performance levels.Nvidia declined to comment.
The U.S.
Commerce Department did not instantly respond to an ask for comment.China represented $17 billion in profits, or 13 percent of Nvidias overall sales, in the ended January 26.
Highlighting the nations strategic significance, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang went to Beijing last month, simply days after U.S.
officials revealed the new export license requirements for the H20 chip.During meetings with Chinese authorities, Huang stressed Chinas significance as an essential market for the company.The U.S.
has restricted exports of Nvidias most sophisticated chips to China considering that 2022, citing issues about their potential military applications.The H20 was presented after Washington tightened export controls in October 2023.
Chinese innovation giants consisting of Tencent, Alibaba and ByteDance, TikToks moms and dad company, stepped up H20 chip orders in the middle of growing need for economical AI models from business such as startup DeepSeek, Reuters reported early this year.Nvidia had accumulated $18 billion worth of H20 orders since January, according to a Reuters report last month.