NVIDIA is pulling out all the stops to stay in the game in China’s AI chip market. They’re cooking up three new AI chips just for China, trying to sidestep those pesky export restrictions from the US. Last year, Uncle Sam threw a wrench in the works, saying NVIDIA couldn’t sell certain chips in China because they could be used for military stuff. So, NVIDIA came up with the A800 and H800 chips exclusively for China.
But hold on, the plot thickens. The US government recently changed the rules again, putting a cap on how powerful exported chips can be. That meant NVIDIA’s A800 and H800 chips were out of the game, along with some other top-tier products, risking over $5 billion worth of chip orders.
In response, NVIDIA is unleashing the HGX H20, L20, and L2 chips designed to play nice with the updated rules. The HGX H20 is supposed to be the powerhouse among them, but all three stay within the power limit set by Uncle Sam.
This whole drama comes as Chinese tech giants like Baidu, Huawei, Xiaomi, and Oppo are gearing up to make their own chips, just in case they can’t rely on imports down the road. But despite the competition, some Chinese customers might stick with NVIDIA because of its solid rep and top-notch AI software.
Word on the street is that NVIDIA might drop the bomb about these new chips on November 16, and you could be buying them before the year wraps up.
