China, US put Nvidia between rock and hard place ... again

"The Guaranteeing Access and Innovation for National Artificial Intelligence (GAIN AI) Act of 2025 didn't get its own standalone vote in the US Senate, instead being passed as part of the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which scored Senate approval in a vote on Thursday despite opposition from Nvidia, which argued to The Register that the rule was a "self-defeating policy based on doomer science fiction," like the now-terminated AI Diffusion Rule that came before it."

"On the other side of the Pacific, China has reportedly taken action to enforce guidance issued in September from the government to cut off the flow of Nvidia AI chips being purchased by firms like Alibaba, ByteDance, and others. According to the Financial Times, Chinese customs officials have stepped up inspections of semiconductor shipments with the aim of restricting imports of Nvidia chips, be they designed for the Chinese market in order to comply with US export control rules or not."

"China is moving faster, while the United States is unlikely to pass the GAIN AI Act or the NDAA into law, given the current government shutdown and House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) insistence that the lower chamber won't return until the Senate passes a bill to fund the US federal government. While the House passed its own version of the NDAA in September,"

Senate approval included the Guaranteeing Access and Innovation for National Artificial Intelligence (GAIN AI) Act of 2025 as part of the FY 2026 NDAA, giving U.S. firms priority access to advanced chips. Nvidia opposed the provision, calling it a "self-defeating policy based on doomer science fiction." Chinese authorities have stepped up customs inspections since September to restrict imports of Nvidia AI chips purchased by firms such as Alibaba and ByteDance, regardless of whether chips are designed for the Chinese market to comply with U.S. export rules. U.S. enactment remains uncertain amid a government shutdown and disagreement in the House.

Read at Theregister