The State Administration for Market Regulation has launched an investigation into the company’s recent behavior as well circumstances surrounding the acquisition of Mellanox Technologies Ltd., China Central Television reported on Monday.
Acquisitions of Mellanox Technologies
On March 11, 2019, Nvidia announced its intention to acquire the company for $6.9 billion. The transaction closed on April 27, 2020 after obtaining consent from the antitrust authorities of the European Union, the United States and China. However, four years ago, Beijing approved the deal, provided that Nvidia would not discriminate against Chinese companies, Bloomberg reminds.
The Chinese government has agreed to allow Nvidia to acquire the Israeli networking equipment maker on the condition that Mellanox will provide information about new products to rivals within 90 days of making them available to Nvidia. Nvidia also agreed that Chinese chipmakers will have a chance to make sure their products work well with Mellanox technology.
An Nvidia representative did not immediately respond to Bloomberg’s request for comment.
Nvidia in the firing line
Meanwhile, Nvidia’s position as a leading supplier of artificial intelligence chips has put it in crossfire of the US and China fight for technological dominance.
Nvidia has repeatedly tried to develop AI chips that will comply with U.S. controls and give Chinese customers the opportunity to work on critical new technology.
Meanwhile, Washington banned the company from selling its most advanced semiconductors to Chinese companies, which was met with sharp criticism from Beijing.
China is not the only one looking at Nvidia’s actions
Earlier this year, the US Department of Justice also sought information on whether Nvidia had violated antitrust laws, Bloomberg News reported. Antitrust officials suspected that Nvidia was hindering other suppliers by penalizing buyers who did not exclusively use its artificial intelligence chips, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
France has also publicly named Nvidia as the target of its own investigation into chips used in AI.
