AMD Faces $800 Million Charge as US Tightens AI Chip Export Controls to China

AMD takes $800M charge on US license requirement for AI chips | TechCrunch

AMD says that the U.S. government's license control requirement for exporting AI chips to China and certain other countries may impact its earnings materially. If AMD doesn't successfully obtain a license, the company could be on the hook for roughly $800 million in inventory, purchase commitments, and related reserves charges, the company said in a filing with the SEC on Wednesday. According to AMD, the license control requirement applies to the company's MI308 products. "On April 15, 2025, [AMD] completed its initial assessment of a new license requirement implemented by the [U.S.] government for the export of certain semiconductor products to China (including Hong Kong and Macau) and D:5 countries," AMD wrote in the filing. "The [export control] applies to [AMD's] MI308 products. The company expects to apply for licenses but there is no assurance that licenses will be granted."

AMD takes $800M haircut as US gov't cuts off China's AI GPU supply

The U.S. recently issued fresh restrictions on AI chip exports to China and other countries, further reducing the maximum allowable performance that manufacturers like Nvidia and AMD can deliver to their customers in the affected regions. Because of this, AMD reported in an SEC filing that it might suffer "charges of up to approximately $800 million in inventory, purchase commitments, and related reserves." The U.S. government has been taking steps to limit Beijing's access to America's most advanced chips to ensure the U.S. will retain its edge in artificial intelligence and prevent its East Asian rival from outpacing it. Because of this, both AMD and Nvidia have created AI GPUs specifically designed to meet the federal government's restrictions. However, the White House updated its limitations recently, making the Nvidia H20 and AMD MI308 ineligible for export without a license. "On April 15, 2025, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (the "Company") completed its initial assessment of a new license requirement implemented by the United States government for the export of certain semiconductor products to China (including Hong Kong and Macau) and D:5 countries...," the company said in its SEC filing. "The Export Control applies to the Company's MI308 products. The Company expects to apply for licenses but there is no assurance that licenses will be granted." AMD isn't the only one taking a substantial cut thanks to expanded export controls. Nvidia has also been hit massively, with the company expecting to make a $5.5 billion write-off with its H20 GPUs. The U.S. Department of Commerce said (via Reuters) that it's enacting these requirements to act on "the President's directive to safeguard our national and economic security." This new restriction will make it harder for Chinese companies to acquire the chips they need to train their AI models. Nevertheless, it's been proven that these bans and sanctions have largely been ineffective. We've already seen some examples of Chinese businessmen importing sanctioned Nvidia H200 GPUs, and it's widely reported that you can get these advanced chips into China by using an intermediary located in nearby countries such as Malaysia, Vietnam, and Taiwan. Singapore and Malaysia are making moves to reduce the leakage of AI chips into China, but we won't know how effective their moves will be in interdicting the massive black market demand.

AMD warns Trump trade war with China could cost it $800M

World War Fee Turns out Nvidia's not the only chip shop caught in the crossfire of Trump's tit-for-tat trade battle with China. AMD revealed Wednesday it expects to book a charge of $800 million -- about 16 percent of the House of Zen's Instinct revenues for fiscal 2024 -- for inventory in shipments of its Instinct MI308 AI accelerators to China and other countries of concern, now blocked by newly implemented export controls. As with Nvidia, Uncle Sam could end up overriding these rules on a case by case basis, and granting export licenses for MI308 orders into China that it approves of. However, as AMD points out in a filing with the US securities watchdog, the SEC, while it plans to apply for these licenses, "there is no assurance that licenses will be granted." Until that happens, AMD is now stuck with a warehouse full of knee-capped GPUs as it waits to find out whether the Trump administration will green light its sales. While it pales in comparison to the $5.5 billion in revenues Nvidia is likely out as a result of the licensing requirements impacting its own H20 processors, it offers a glimpse into just how big AMD's Instinct business has grown since the debut of the MI300X in late 2023. While AMD is no stranger to GPUs, it's only recently that the Ryzen biz has pivoted from hardcore HPC parts, such as the Instinct MI250-series used in the United States' first exascale supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, to parts competitive with Nvidia for lower-precision AI applications. When it launched, the MI300X boasted up to 32 percent higher performance in certain AI workloads compared to Nvidia's then-flagship the H100, along with more than double the memory and significantly greater bandwidth. As we reported at the time, AMD had aimed to produce a version of that top-end processor that was compliant with America's restrictions on powerful US-designed silicon going into China - a variant we now know as the MI308 series - but beyond that, we don't know much about it. Those export restrictions, imposed in late 2023, forced AMD to strip down the MI308's floating-point performance and interconnect bandwidth compared to the MI300X -- likely putting the China-bound version in the same ballpark as Nvidia's H20. We've asked AMD for more information on the chip and the export controls limiting its sale outside the US; we'll let you know if we hear anything back. While AMD and Nvidia's ability to do business in China will be impaired for the foreseeable future, they may be able to rework their existing designs to limbo dance under the Commerce Department's latest performance limits on China-bound silicon. It's also possible we'll see AMD reimagine the MI308 as a cut-rate inference part for nations where it's still legal, allowing them to recoup some of their investment. Nvidia did something similar with the A800. Initially designed to comply with interconnect bandwidth limits on GPUs sold in China, the part was reborn as a high-end workstation chip for machine-learning-heavy applications. ®

AMD Sees $800 Million Charge From US Export Controls on AI Chips

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. said it expects to take a charge of as much as $800 million after the Trump administration put new restrictions on semiconductor exports to China. The company came to the conclusion after it completed an initial assessment of a new license requirement for the export of its MI308 products, it said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Nvidia Corp. said Tuesday in a similar filing that it will take a writedown of $5.5 billion because its H20 chip will be banned from export to China unless it secures a license.

US issues export licensing requirements for Nvidia, AMD chips to China

April 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday it was issuing new export licensing requirements for Nvidia's (NVDA.O), opens new tab H20, AMD's (AMD.O), opens new tab MI308 artificial intelligence chips, as well as their equivalents, to China. "The Commerce Department is committed to acting on the President's directive to safeguard our national and economic security," a Commerce spokesperson said. Nvidia said earlier on Tuesday that it would take $5.5 billion in charges after the U.S. government limited exports of its H20 artificial intelligence chip to China, a key market for one of its most popular chips. Reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by Himani Sarkar Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab Suggested Topics:Technology

AMD says US rule on chips to China could cost it $800 mn

San Francisco (AFP) - Chip developer Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) on Wednesday said it expects new US licensing requirements for semiconductors exported to China to cost it as much as $800 million. The Silicon Valley company's earnings warning, filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), came a day after rival Nvidia notified regulators that it expects a $5.5 billion hit this quarter from licensing requirements on the main chip it can legally sell in China. Shares in both companies were down by about 7 percent at the close of formal trading on Wednesday. The new US export control measure applies to MI308 graphics processing units (GPUs) designed for high-performance applications like gaming and artificial intelligence, AMD said. AMD said in the filing that it "expects to apply for (export) licenses but there is no assurance that licenses will be granted." The $800 million earnings blow it forecast would come from charges in "inventory, purchase commitments and related reserves," it added. Wall Street stocks overall tumbled Wednesday as the Federal Reserve chief warned of the drag from President Donald Trump's tariffs, with Nvidia sinking on costs connected to the US-China trade war. US officials last week told Nvidia it must obtain licenses to export its H20 chips to China because of concerns they may be used in supercomputers there, the Silicon Valley company said in a SEC filing. The United States had already restricted exports to China of Nvidia's most sophisticated GPUs, tailored for powering top-end artificial intelligence models. Nvidia was told the licensing requirement on H20 chips would last indefinitely, it said in the filing. Chief executive Jensen Huang has said publicly that the AI chip powerhouse will balance legal compliance and technological advances under Trump, and that nothing will stop the global advancement of artificial intelligence. "We'll continue to do that and we'll be able to do that just fine," the Taiwan-born entrepreneur told reporters late last year. Trump's predecessor Joe Biden restricted Nvidia from selling some of its top AI chips to China, which the United States sees as a strategic competitor in high tech.

US Issues Export Licensing Requirements for Nvidia, AMD Chips to China

(Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday it was issuing new export licensing requirements for Nvidia's H20, AMD's MI308 artificial intelligence chips, as well as their equivalents, to China. "The Commerce Department is committed to acting on the President's directive to safeguard our national and economic security," a Commerce spokesperson said. Nvidia said earlier on Tuesday that it would take $5.5 billion in charges after the U.S. government limited exports of its H20 artificial intelligence chip to China, a key market for one of its most popular chips. (Reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

AMD says US rule on chips to China could cost it $800 million

The new US export control measure applies to MI308 graphics processing units (GPUs) designed for high-performance applications like gaming and artificial intelligence, AMD said. The company added in the filing that it "expects to apply for (export) licenses but there is no assurance that licenses will be granted."Chip developer Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) on Wednesday said it expects new US licensing requirements for semiconductors exported to China to cost it as much as $800 million. The Silicon Valley company's earnings warning, filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), came a day after rival Nvidia notified regulators that it expects a $5.5 billion hit this quarter from licensing requirements on the main chip it can legally sell in China. Shares in both companies were down by about 7 percent at the close of formal trading on Wednesday. The new US export control measure applies to MI308 graphics processing units (GPUs) designed for high-performance applications like gaming and artificial intelligence, AMD said. AMD said in the filing that it "expects to apply for (export) licenses but there is no assurance that licenses will be granted." The $800 million earnings blow it forecast would come from charges in "inventory, purchase commitments and related reserves," it added. Wall Street stocks overall tumbled Wednesday as the Federal Reserve chief warned of the drag from President Donald Trump's tariffs, with Nvidia sinking on costs connected to the US-China trade war. US officials last week told Nvidia it must obtain licenses to export its H20 chips to China because of concerns they may be used in supercomputers there, the Silicon Valley company said in a SEC filing. The United States had already restricted exports to China of Nvidia's most sophisticated GPUs, tailored for powering top-end artificial intelligence models. Nvidia was told the licensing requirement on H20 chips would last indefinitely, it said in the filing. Chief executive Jensen Huang has said publicly that the AI chip powerhouse will balance legal compliance and technological advances under Trump, and that nothing will stop the global advancement of artificial intelligence. "We'll continue to do that and we'll be able to do that just fine," the Taiwan-born entrepreneur told reporters late last year. Trump's predecessor Joe Biden restricted Nvidia from selling some of its top AI chips to China, which the United States sees as a strategic competitor in high tech.

AMD Stock Drops Amid AI Chip Export Ban: What's Going On? - NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD)

Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD shares are trading lower by 12.6% to $84.87 over the trailing week. Investors are weighing new U.S. government restrictions on AI chip exports to China and several other regions. The restrictions have elevated concerns about the company's exposure to geopolitical risk and supply chain disruptions in key international markets. What To Know: The latest measures from the U.S. government -- expanding upon the Biden administration's ongoing strategy to limit China's access to advanced AI hardware -- now require AMD to obtain licenses to sell its MI308 data center GPUs in China, Hong Kong, Macau and countries listed under the Department of Commerce's "D:5" designation, which includes nations of national security concern. Read Also: Broadcom, Marvell, Synopsys: The Chips That Might Not Crumble In The Coming Storm The MI308 is AMD's most advanced data center GPU to date, designed for training and inferencing large AI models. It directly competes with NVIDIA Corp's NVDA H100 in high-performance computing applications and forms a crucial pillar of AMD's push into AI infrastructure markets. The licensing requirements now create an additional bottleneck for AMD in a region that had been a significant source of demand for its AI accelerators. Financial Fallout: In anticipation of a sharp decline in sales to China, AMD has taken a one-time inventory charge of $800 million related to unsold or redirected chips and expects a $1.5 billion to $1.8 billion hit to revenue -- equivalent to roughly 10% of its projected 2025 data center business. This comes at a critical moment for AMD, as it has aggressively ramped up its AI ambitions through investments in hardware, software stacks like ROCm and ecosystem partnerships. Broader Implications: The export restrictions are part of a broader U.S. effort to curtail China's access to cutting-edge AI hardware amid growing national security tensions. While demand for AI infrastructure in China remains robust, analysts expect an accelerated pivot toward domestically developed solutions, such as Huawei's Ascend AI chips. This shift could undercut AMD's long-term positioning in one of the world's largest tech markets. Unlike NVIDIA, which benefits from stronger software ecosystems (CUDA) and more diverse hardware offerings, AMD is still in the earlier stages of building out a comprehensive AI platform. Custom silicon developers and hyperscalers designing in-house chips remain unaffected by the new rules -- giving them a strategic edge over traditional chipmakers like AMD, whose offerings are subject to export controls. Read Also: Dollar Hits 3-Year Lows, US Stocks Tumble As Trump Threatens To Fire Powell: 'Contrarians Of The World, Unite!' Investors can gain exposure to AMD by investing in the VanEck Semiconductor ETF SMH. How To Buy AMD Stock By now you're likely curious about how to participate in the market for Advanced Micro Devices - be it to purchase shares, or even attempt to bet against the company. Buying shares is typically done through a brokerage account. You can find a list of possible trading platforms here. Many will allow you to buy "fractional shares," which allows you to own portions of stock without buying an entire share. In the case of Advanced Micro Devices, which is trading at $85.34 as of publishing time, $100 would buy you 1.17 shares of stock. If you're looking to bet against a company, the process is more complex. You'll need access to an options trading platform, or a broker who will allow you to "go short" a share of stock by lending you the shares to sell. The process of shorting a stock can be found at this resource. Otherwise, if your broker allows you to trade options, you can either buy a put option, or sell a call option at a strike price above where shares are currently trading - either way it allows you to profit off of the share price decline. According to data from Benzinga Pro, AMD has a 52-week high of $187.28 and a 52-week low of $76.48. AMDAdvanced Micro Devices Inc$85.65-2.11%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum12.80Growth66.56Quality83.22Value17.55Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewNVDANVIDIA Corp$96.26-5.15%SMHVanEck Semiconductor ETF$186.64-3.06%Got Questions? AskWhich semiconductor stocks could benefit from AMD's issues?How will export restrictions reshape chip demand?What investments can capitalize on AI hardware shifts?Will domestic chipmakers gain market share in China?How might AMD's competitors leverage its setbacks?Which hyperscalers are best positioned for growth now?Could AI infrastructure investments shift towards domestic firms?What ETFs should investors watch for semiconductor exposure?How can geopolitical risks create investment opportunities?What strategies can investors use for shorting AMD?Powered ByMarket News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

AMD warns of $800 million charge from new U.S. chip export controls By Investing.com

Investing.com - Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) has warned that it expects to incur a charge of up to around $800 million due to new U.S. export controls on high-end artificial intelligence chips to China. In a filing on Wednesday, AMD said it had completed an initial assessment of the updated restrictions a day earlier, noting that the rules would apply to its MI308 chips. A spokesperson for the U.S. Commerce Department said late on Tuesday that it was issuing updated licensing requirements for exports of processors like the MI308 as well as AMD-rival Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA)'s H20 and other similar products. The spokesperson said the move is in line with a directive from U.S. President Donald Trump to "safeguard [...] national and economic security." Nvidia earlier warned that it will incur a charge of up to $5.5 billion becuase of U.S. government limits on exports of the H20 to China, one of its key markets. The H20 is the main AI chip Nvidia is permitted to sell in China under export restrictions originially imposed by the Biden administration, as Washington has sought to close off Beijing's access to cutting-edge advancements in AI tech.