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China’s antitrust regulator said on Monday it found Nvidia in violation of the country’s anti-monopoly law and would proceed with further investigation, which could lead to punitive actions against the American chipmaker amid escalating technology rivalry with the US.
The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) said in a one-line statement that Nvidia violated both antitrust laws and the Chinese government’s terms of approval for the company’s acquisition of Israeli interconnect solutions provider Mellanox Technologies in 2019.
The SAMR initiated its investigation into Nvidia in December over the US$6.9 billion deal, which received conditional approval from China in April 2020. The approval stipulated that Nvidia must continue supplying its graphics processing units and interconnect products to China under “fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory principles” while ensuring compatibility with other companies’ hardware.
The regulator said on Monday that its probe would continue, without providing further details.
Nvidia said in a statement that “we comply with the law in all respects. We will continue to cooperate with all relevant government agencies as they evaluate the impact of export controls on competition in the commercial markets”.

The investigation was “part of the broader tug of war in US-China trade talks”, said Fei Zhichao, a semiconductor analyst at Longbridge Securities.
The SAMR announcement comes as Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent kicked off a new round of bilateral discussions in Madrid this week to address a range of mutual economic and trade issues, including TikTok.
“The SAMR’s disclosure on the progress of the Nvidia probe signals to the US side that the investigation is serious and will produce results rather than quietly fading away,” said Liu Xu, a researcher at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University specialising in competition law.
That stood in contrast with previous cases concerning Microsoft, Micron Technology, Samsung Electronics and Ericsson, Liu said. “The regulator has been vague on how Nvidia might ultimately be punished and for which actions, which adds to the pressure on the company and the US government.”
Analysts previously indicated that Nvidia could face an antitrust fine of up to US$1 billion.
The investigation also coincided with heightened scrutiny between Beijing and Washington in the semiconductor industry.
On Friday, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security added 23 Chinese companies, including Fudan Microelectronics Group, to a trade blacklist. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce, meanwhile, has launched an anti-dumping probe into American analogue chipmakers.

“I wouldn’t see [the SAMR statement] as simple retaliation for US export controls,” said Mehran Gul, author of The New Geography of Innovation who previously reported on technology for the World Economic Forum and the UN.
“What’s striking is that it comes just a month after Washington eased restrictions on the H20 chip. Beijing knows the US strategy is to keep China dependent on lower-end AI hardware rather than risk it building alternatives that others could adopt.”
Nvidia is caught in the crossfire as it struggles to navigate US export restrictions against China, as well as Beijing’s call to adopt domestically manufactured artificial intelligence chips.
While Nvidia successfully lobbied US President Donald Trump to allow exports of its H20 chips to China, Chinese authorities have advised local buyers to avoid the tailor-made products. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said last month that the company was hoping to bring its advanced Blackwell processors to China.
Nvidia also faces scrutiny from other Chinese regulators. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) summoned the chipmaker in July to discuss potential security risks associated with its H20 chips.
The CAC has yet to issue further statements elaborating on claims that the H20 chips may have tracking and remote-control functions. Nvidia has repeatedly denied that its processors contained “back-door” features.
This is not the first time that China has accused US businesses of violating its antitrust law. In 2015, the National Development and Reform Commission imposed a hefty 6.09 billion yuan (about US$1 billion at the time) on chipmaker Qualcomm.


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The initial investigation lays the groundwork for Beijing to potentially take further action against Nvidia


The initial investigation lays the groundwork for Beijing to potentially take further action against Nvidia.


Tech war: China finds US chip giant Nvidia violated anti-monopoly law

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The initial investigation lays the groundwork for Beijing to potentially take further action against Nvidia

The initial investigation lays the groundwork for Beijing to potentially take further action against Nvidia