Nvidia (NVDA, Financials) publicly rebuked Amazon-backed Anthropic's push for tighter AI chip export controls, calling the company's claims about Chinese smuggling tactics exaggerated and harmful to U.S. competitiveness.
The “AI Diffusion Rule,” established under former President Joe Biden, is set to take effect May 15. The policy restricts exports of advanced AI chips and model weights to nations including China.
Anthropic claimed in a blog post that Chinese smugglers had hidden chips inside prosthetic “baby bumps” and among live lobsters. Nvidia dismissed the allegations and said U.S. firms should focus on innovation instead of “manipulating regulators.” CEO Jensen Huang also said during a Washington, D.C. visit that China is “not behind” in AI and praised Huawei's capabilities.
Anthropic relies on Nvidia's hardware to train models. Its proposal for tighter export rules could curb Nvidia's overseas revenue. The firm argues that access to computing power is a national security chokepoint.
The escalating disagreement between two major AI stakeholders signals a growing divide in U.S. tech policy as President Donald Trump considers further tightening export rules.
- Explore NVDA insider trades.
- See NVDA's valuation chart.
