Chinese tech companies are training their artificial intelligence models overseas to access Nvidia’s (NVDA) chips, the Financial Times reported, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Companies such as Alibaba (BABA) and ByteDance (BDNCE) are said to be training their latest AI models in Southeast Asian data centers. The companies rely on lease agreements for data centers owned and operated by non-Chinese entities.
The shift in AI training is aimed at bypassing U.S. measures to restrict sales of Nvidia’s (NVDA) chips, like the H20, in China.
Notably, DeepSeek’s (DEEPSEEK) model is being trained in China as the AI startup reportedly secured a large stock of Nvidia (NVDA) chips before the U.S. imposed export controls.
DeepSeek (DEEPSEEK) is also working with local chipmakers like Huawei to develop the next generation of Chinese AI chips.
The report comes as China has been discouraging local tech companies from buying advanced Nvidia (NVDA) chips, and recently banned the use of foreign AI chips in state-funded data centers.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is considering whether to let Nvidia sell H200 chips to China.