Nvidia halves Asia buyer list in China chip crackdown, steps up due diligence: report

NVIDIA has more than halved the number of Asian customers authorised to buy its AI chips after creating a new “white list” of companies that have passed tougher compliance checks aimed at preventing the products from reaching China, the Financial Times reported on Monday (Jul 14).

Over the past few months, the chipmaker has intensified due diligence in Singapore, Malaysia and Japan, the report added, citing three people familiar with the matter.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular business hours.

The tighter scrutiny comes as the Trump administration seeks to prevent advanced US chips from reaching Chinese entities through third countries.

The US Commerce Department issued guidance in May aimed at curbing advanced AI chips from reaching overseas subsidiaries of Chinese companies, highlighting concerns that Nvidia’s cutting-edge Blackwell processors may have been exported to Chinese-linked entities in countries such as Malaysia despite US restrictions.

Nvidia has tightened compliance procedures following pressure from Washington, the FT said, adding that staff now visit customers’ data centres, verify contracts and interview end users as part of the checks.

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The US Department of Commerce is also involved, providing oversight and political backing, the report said.

The department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular business hours. REUTERS