Nvidia faces $5.5 billion charge as US restricts chip sales to China

Nvidia on Tuesday said it would take $5.5 billion in charges after the U.S. government limited exports of its H20 artificial intelligence chip to China, a key market for one of its most popular chips. Nvidia's AI chips have been a key focus of U.S. export controls as U.S. officials have moved to keep the most advanced chips from being sold to China as the U.S. tries to keep ahead in the AI race. After those controls were implemented, Nvidia began designing chips that would come as close as possible to U.S. limits. Nvidia shares were down about 6% in after-hours trading. A U.S. Commerce Department spokesperson said late on Tuesday that it was issuing new licensing requirements for exports of chips including Nvidia's H20, AMD's MI308 and their equivalents. "The Commerce Department is committed to acting on the President's directive to safeguard our national and economic security," said the spokesperson of the department that oversees U.S. export controls. AMD did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Its shares were down 7% in after-hours trading. For Nvidia, the H20 is its most