Trump says Nvidia’s top AI chips reserved for US companies

U.S. President Donald Trump declared that American tech giant Nvidia will reserve its most advanced AI chips for American companies, ensuring they stay out of China and other foreign markets, according to CBS and a Reuters report on November 3rd.

Trump said during the interview, “We will not let anybody have them other than the United States,” referring to Nvidia’s high-end Blackwell chips. “We don’t give the Blackwell chip to other people.” 

The Blackwell chip boasts the capability of powering advanced AI models and data centres, and is considered one of the most powerful processors ever created.

As per market cap, Nvidia is now the world’s most valuable company, positioning itself at the centre of Washington’s technology strategy as U.S. and China tensions escalate.

Trump’s statements suggest that the White House could implement even tighter restrictions on the export of semiconductors than what officials had previously indicated, potentially blocking not only China but also other countries from accessing Nvidia’s advanced AI chips.

In July, Trump’s administration revealed a plan to expand AI exports to allies while restricting exports to China; however, his new statements have contradicted previous policy moves.

Recently, Nvidia announced plans to deliver more than 260,000 Blackwell chips to South Korean companies such as Samsung Electronics.

When asked about allowing China to receive a downgraded version of the chip, Trump told CBS he might allow sales of certain units, “We will let them deal with Nvidia, but not in terms of the most advanced,” he said.

However, the possibility of any sales to China has triggered backlash in Washington, with Republican Congressman John Moolenaar stating that such a move “would be akin to giving Iran weapons-grade uranium.”

Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, revealed last week that the company has not applied for export licenses for China, due to a lack of interest from Beijing. “They’ve made it very clear that they don’t want Nvidia to be there right now,” he said. 

CBS, Reuters, Maghrebi.org