The president says he could ‘make a deal’ for Nvidia to sell a downgraded version of its flagship Blackwell chip in China
Donald Trump has suggested he might allow Nvidia to sell chips in China that are more technology advanced than currently permitted, despite deep-seated fears in Washington that Beijing could harness US artificial intelligence capabilities to supercharge its military.
In a briefing on Monday, the president suggested he could “make a deal” for Nvidia to sell a downgraded version of its flagship Blackwell chip in China. The move could open the door to China securing more advanced computing power from the US, even as the two countries battle for technology supremacy, critics said.
“I think he’s coming to see me again about that, but that will be an un-enhanced version of the big one,” he added.
The move sparked unease across Washington, where China hawks of both parties have long sought to keep Beijing generations behind US AI technology. Nvidia’s chips are a major driver of the AI boom, highly sought-after by both China and the US.
