Nvidia tightens Asian customer screening to curb chip smuggling

Nvidia has reportedly created a tighter whitelist of verified Asian customers to reduce the diversion of its AI chips into China. Financial Times sources said the roster cuts authorized clients by more than half, with remaining buyers required to pass tougher compliance checks intended to confirm they are operating genuine businesses rather than shell companies. The reported measures include visits to customer data centers, contract verification and interviews with end users.

The move follows pressure from Washington and a series of smuggling investigations. Authorities previously arrested Supermicro co-founder Yih-Shyan Liaw alongside other suspects over an alleged $2.5 billion Nvidia hardware smuggling operation into China. Related probes also reached Singapore, where officials seized a $42-million mansion tied to alleged AI GPU smugglers, and Taiwan, where offices linked to Supermicro and supply-chain partners were raided.

U.S. restrictions have blocked exports of the latest AI GPUs to China since 2022, but investigations found companies could still obtain the chips until recent crackdowns tightened supply. President Donald Trump allowed Nvidia to export H200 GPUs to select customers in December 2025, but Beijing refused to let Chinese companies buy them as it pushes domestic semiconductor suppliers, which are reportedly sold out.