Nvidia Tackles Chip Smuggling with Location Verification Software

Background

In a move to combat the growing issue of chip smuggling, Nvidia is reportedly testing software that can track the location of its AI chips. The development comes as rumors of its chips being smuggled into China have been on the rise.

Details

According to Reuters, Nvidia has built location verification technology that would allow it to track the country of origin for its chips. The software, which is still in testing phase, tracks computing performance and uses the delay in communication between servers to estimate the chip’s location. This technology will be optional for customers to use and will be made available for Blackwell chips first.

Chip Smuggling Allegations

Multiple reports have surfaced in recent days, alleging that China’s DeepSeek AI models have been trained on smuggled Nvidia Blackwell chips. Nvidia has responded to these reports by stating that it has not seen any evidence of this type of smuggling.
“We haven’t seen any substantiation or received tips of ‘phantom data centers’ constructed to deceive us and our OEM partners, then deconstructed, smuggled, and reconstructed somewhere else,” an Nvidia spokesperson told TechCrunch. “While such smuggling seems far-fetched, we pursue any tip we receive.”

Context

This news comes just days after Nvidia received approval from the U.S. government to start selling its H200 AI chips to approved customers in China. However, it is essential to note that this announcement pertains only to older H200 chips and not the company’s Blackwell chips.

Source: Link