U.S. chipmaker Nvidia has asked its distributors to carefully scrutinize its customers in Southeast Asia over concerns that its artificial intelligence chips may end up in China.
Nvidia is barred from selling most of its most advanced artificial intelligence chips to China as part of Washington’s export controls aimed at hampering Beijing’s advanced semiconductor technology.
But Chinese universities and research institutions Have managed to obtain those banned chips A Reuters investigation earlier this year showed that server products made by AMD and Dell Technologies.
Also Watch AF: Congress to vote on new restrictions on U.S. investment in China
The findings prompted the U.S. Commerce Department to ask Nvidia to investigate how its products ended up in China. According to “The Information”which quoted a person close to the department.
This prompted Nvidia to ask large resellers including Advanced Micro Devices and Dell to conduct spot checks on its customers in Southeast Asia, the report said.
According to The Information, five different people involved in smuggling Nvidia chips say they have so far successfully evaded Super Micro’s recent inspections.
The report quoted a person close to AMD as saying that some customers copied the serial numbers of servers containing Nvidia chips purchased from AMD and connected them to other servers to which they had access.
In some cases, smugglers even changed the serial numbers in the server’s operating system, the report said.
A spokesman for Nvidia said the company insisted its customers and partners “strictly comply with all export control restrictions.”
“Any unauthorized alteration of previously owned product, including any gray market resale, will be a burden, not a benefit, to our business,” a spokesperson said in an email response.
Increased chip tension
At the same time, Dell said it requires its resellers and resellers to comply with all applicable regulations and export controls.
The company added that if a partner fails to comply with these obligations, it will take appropriate action “up to and including the termination” of its relationship.
AMD said it investigates and takes action against unauthorized exports or re-exports of its products by third parties.
“Supermicro complies with all U.S. export control requirements for the sale and export of GPU systems to regions and parties that require licenses under the Export Administration Regulations,” the company told Reuters.
The U.S. Commerce Department did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Nvidia investigation comes as Washington Increasingly attempts are made to suppress Advanced technology flows to China.
Last month, the United States ordered Taiwanese chip giant TSMC, the world’s largest contract chip manufacturer— Stop delivering all advanced AI chips Designed by Chinese technology company.
That’s after A TSMC chip was discovered One of China’s most advanced “domestic” chips – the Ascend 910B designed by Huawei Technologies.
- Vishakha Saxena Additional Editor, Reuters
Also read:
Nvidia in talks with China despite looming new U.S. chip restrictions
Smuggling network sells Nvidia chips to Chinese military
South Korean company smuggles 53,000 U.S. embargoed chips to China
Nvidia chip prices take hit in duel with China’s Huawei
China launches antitrust investigation Nvidia “faces $1 billion fine”
China’s Huawei and SMIC will “increase” production of latest artificial intelligence chips
U.S. removes Chinese chip companies from ‘military relations’ list after lawsuit
Chinese industry body says buying U.S. chips ‘unsafe’
Huawei and SMIC will use 5nm chips to fight US sanctions: FT
Analysts warn that the United States may sanction Chinese DRAM chip giants next
Raimondo says Huawei’s China-made 7nm chips are “years behind the U.S.”
China threatens to cut off ASML supplies over new U.S. chip restrictions
U.S. chipmaker fined $500,000 for shipping chips to China – New York Times
