Nvidia Denies Back Doors in Chips Amid China Security Concerns

Nvidia has reiterated that its chips do not have back doors or kill switches, following a summons by China's cybersecurity regulator over national-security concerns. The company warned against embedding such features in chips, citing the potential for hackers and hostile actors to exploit them. Nvidia has been selling its H20 AI chip in China, which has been a top seller, despite a monthslong pause amid US-China trade tensions earlier this year.

Nvidia (NVDA) has reiterated that its chips do not have backdoors or kill switches, following a summons by China's cybersecurity regulator over national-security concerns. The company warned against embedding such features in chips, citing the potential for hackers and hostile actors to exploit them. Nvidia has been selling its H20 AI chip in China, which has been a top seller, despite a monthslong pause amid US-China trade tensions earlier this year.

The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) pressed Nvidia for answers after reports of potential backdoor features in the H20 chip, which was built specifically for the Chinese market after the US clamped down on high-end chip exports. Nvidia maintains that the H20, a toned-down version of the H100, has no tracking hardware [1].

Despite the political drama, demand for the H20 chip remains strong. Reuters reports that China recently ordered about 300,000 H20 chips from TSMC. Analysts believe Beijing will continue purchasing while rushing to develop its own alternatives from Huawei and other domestic companies [1].

Nvidia published a blog post on Tuesday, reiterating that its chips do not contain backdoors or kill switches. The company cautioned that embedding such features would be a "gift" to hackers and hostile actors, potentially undermining global digital infrastructure and fracturing trust in U.S. technology [2].

The White House and both houses of the U.S. Congress have proposed requiring U.S. chip firms to include location verification technology with their chips sold abroad to prevent them from being diverted to countries where U.S. export laws ban sales. However, no formal rules have been established yet [2].

For now, China’s regulator has not announced any follow-up action. The chips will likely continue to flow, albeit under a brighter spotlight [1].

References:
[1] https://www.communicationstoday.co.in/nvidia-denies-chinese-claims-of-surveillance-backdoors-in-h20-ai-chip/
[2] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/nvidia-reiterates-chips-no-backdoors-025056445.html