[News] U.S. Reportedly Probes DeepSeek’s Acquisition of Banned AI Chips as NVIDIA’s Singapore Sales Soar

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According to a report from Liberty Times, citing Bloomberg, the White House and the FBI have launched an investigation into whether China’s AI startup DeepSeek illegally obtained NVIDIA chips through third-party buyers in Singapore and other locations.

DeepSeek claims its technological breakthrough was achieved using mature NVIDIA chips, such as H800 and A100, which are less advanced than the H100s—chips restricted from export to China, as indicated by CNBC. However, in an interview with CNBC, Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang suggested that DeepSeek may have accessed the banned chips, a claim that DeepSeek has denied.

The Surge in NVIDIA’s Sales in Singapore Raises Questions

The Liberty Times report, citing data from KobeissiLetter’s X in Wccftech, highlights that NVIDIA’s sales in Singapore have surged by as much as 740% since DeepSeek was established. This sharp increase has drawn scrutiny, as some speculate that Singapore may serve as an intermediary for chip shipments to China.

Addressing these concerns, the Bloomberg report cites an NVIDIA spokesperson who clarified that the company’s Singapore-related revenue does not indicate redirection to China, since many of NVIDIA’s customers have business entities in Singapore and use them for products intended for the U.S. and Western markets.

Additionally, as noted by Liberty Times, citing  another CNBC report, Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) issued a statement affirming that NVIDIA has clarified there is no reason to believe DeepSeek obtained any export-controlled products from Singapore. The ministry also reiterated that Singapore expects U.S. companies like NVIDIA to comply with U.S. export control regulations, and Singapore’s customs and law enforcement agencies pledge to continue working with relevant U.S. authorities.

The U.S. Weighs Stricter AI Chip Export Restrictions

In response to growing concerns over China’s access to advanced AI chips, a Reuters report reveals that the Trump administration is considering further tightening export restrictions on AI chips to China. This could extend the ban to include NVIDIA’s H20 chip, which was specifically developed for the Chinese market.

Another Reuters report indicates that NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang met with Trump at the White House on January 31 (Eastern Time). The meeting reportedly focused on DeepSeek’s rise and the possibility of the U.S. government imposing even stricter AI chip export controls.

Meanwhile, as reported by Liberty Times, citing BBC, sources suggest that Microsoft Corp. and OpenAI are investigating whether OpenAI-generated data was accessed without authorization by a group linked to DeepSeek.

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(Photo credit: NVIDIA)