SANTA CLARA (dpa-AFX) - China escalated its trade dispute with the United States on Monday, accusing Nvidia of violating anti-monopoly laws in a move that underscores the high stakes surrounding artificial intelligence and chip technology.
The announcement came just as U.S. and Chinese officials entered their fourth round of trade negotiations in Madrid, led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who described the talks as progressing positively.
The preliminary findings, released by China's State Administration for Market Regulation, stem from an investigation into Nvidia's 2020 acquisition of Mellanox Technologies, which Beijing conditionally approved. Regulators said Nvidia failed to meet those conditions but offered no specifics.
The agency confirmed it will conduct a deeper inquiry, leaving open the possibility of penalties.
The move adds pressure to ongoing negotiations as both nations continue tit-for-tat measures. The U.S. has largely banned exports of advanced AI chips to China, while Beijing has delayed rare-earth mineral supplies critical to electronics and defense.
Last week, the Trump administration tightened restrictions further, placing two Chinese chipmakers on the U.S. Entity List.
At the same time, President Donald Trump has sought to carve out a delicate balance, striking a deal last month with Nvidia and AMD to pay a 15% revenue fee to the U.S. government in exchange for export licenses.
The agreement allows stripped-down AI chips like Nvidia's H20 to reenter the Chinese market, which accounted for 13% of Nvidia's sales in 2024.
Still, China's fresh antitrust warning signals skepticism over U.S. overtures. With AI chips viewed by both governments as a cornerstone of national security, Beijing's challenge to Nvidia underscores how technological rivalry has become the central battlefield in the broader U.S.-China trade conflict.
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