Rumor
Senior U.S. official claims DeepSeek illegally obtained restricted NVIDIA Blackwell chips for AI training
Tuesday, February 24, 2026 at 02:07 AM
A senior U.S. government official reports that DeepSeek illegally acquired restricted Blackwell chips and utilized them to develop their latest artificial intelligence models, according to industry reports.
Context
A senior U.S. government official has alleged that Chinese AI startup DeepSeek illegally obtained and utilized restricted Nvidia Blackwell chips to train its latest models. The claims suggest a sophisticated smuggling operation involving "phantom" data centers in Southeast Asia. According to reports, servers were reportedly installed in these regions for compliance inspections before being dismantled and shipped to a facility in Inner Mongolia for reassembly. This development highlights significant persistent gaps in U.S. export controls and the robust "gray market" for high-end semiconductors.
Nvidia has dismissed the allegations as "far-fetched," maintaining that it adheres to all federal export guidelines. However, federal investigators are reportedly looking into the illegal acquisition of several thousand Blackwell GPUs. For investors, this news increases regulatory risk and the likelihood of tighter oversight on global distribution channels. While the U.S. government recently relaxed restrictions on older H200 models, these new allegations of Blackwell shipments could lead to a renewed crackdown on high-performance hardware exports.
Related Companies
Nvidia
NVDA