Chinese entities have obtained advanced Nvidia GPUs for AI and HPC applications despite U.S. restrictions through an advanced underground smuggling network from third-party countries. The U.S. government is unhappy about this, so it plans to implement new regulations to limit Chinese companies from acquiring these AI GPUs from intermediary countries. The rule will purportedly go into effect by the end of the month, reports the South China Morning Post.
The proposed regulations, reportedly developed by Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, would include national quotas on GPU exports and a global licensing system with reporting requirements. These steps target countries that are major transshipment hubs but are not yet subject to U.S. export restrictions. They address a key vulnerability in current policies that allows hardware to be re-exported to restricted countries.
