Nvidia to Introduce Less Costly Blackwell AI Chip for China after United States Export Curbs, Sources Say
Nvidia will introduce a brand-new expert system chipset for China at a substantially reduced price than its recently restricted H20 model and intends to start automation as early as June, sources familiar with the matter said. The GPU, or graphics processing system, will be part of Nvidia’s latest generation Blackwell-architecture AI processors.
The new chip is expected to be priced between $6,500 and $8,000, well below the $10,000-$12,000 the H20 sold for, according to two of the sources. This lower price reflects its weaker specifications and simpler production requirements.
New Chip Specifications
The new AI chip will be based on Nvidia’s RTX Pro 6000D, a server-class graphics processor, and will utilize conventional GDDR7 memory instead of more advanced high-bandwidth memory. It will not use Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s advanced Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate (CoWoS) packaging technology.
Market Impact and Future Plans
China remains a significant market for Nvidia, accounting for 13% of its sales in the previous fiscal year. Nvidia has had to modify GPUs for the Chinese market multiple times due to U.S. export restrictions.
Nvidia is also developing another Blackwell-architecture chip for China, set to begin production in September. However, specific details of this chip have not been confirmed.
Export Limitations and Impact
The H20 export restriction led Nvidia to incur significant losses, prompting the company to explore new chip designs under the current export limitations. The latest restrictions on GPU memory bandwidth have further influenced Nvidia’s product development.
Conclusion
The introduction of the more affordable Blackwell AI chip for China underscores Nvidia’s commitment to adapting to evolving export regulations and market demands while maintaining its presence in China’s growing data center market.
