LG Energy Solution Shares Slide After Ford Cancels EV Battery Supply Deal 
Italy Supreme Court Upholds Salvini Acquittal in Migrant Kidnapping Case 
Oracle Stock Slides After Blue Owl Exit Report, Company Says Michigan Data Center Talks Remain on Track 
SUPERFORTUNE Launches AI-Powered Mobile App, Expanding Beyond Web3 Into $392 Billion Metaphysics Market 
Nvidia Weighs Expanding H200 AI Chip Production as China Demand Surges 
Biren Technology Targets Hong Kong IPO to Raise $300 Million Amid China’s AI Chip Push 
Robinhood Expands Sports Event Contracts With Player Performance Wagers 
Federal Judge Declines to Immediately Halt Trump’s $300 Million White House Ballroom Project 
Apple Explores India for iPhone Chip Assembly as Manufacturing Push Accelerates 
Trump Taps Former DHS Official Troy Edgar for U.S. Ambassador Role in El Salvador 
Sydney Bondi Beach Shooting Sparks Calls for Stronger Protection of Jewish Community in Australia 
Federal Appeals Court Allows Trump’s National Guard Deployment in Washington, D.C. to Continue 
MetaX IPO Soars as China’s AI Chip Stocks Ignite Investor Frenzy 
Trump Attends Dover Ceremony Honoring U.S. Personnel Killed in Syria 
Lukashenko Urges Swift Ukraine Peace Deal, Backs Trump’s Push for Rapid Resolution 
Trump Orders Blockade of Sanctioned Oil Tankers, Raising Venezuela Tensions and Oil Prices 
Apple Opens iPhone to Alternative App Stores in Japan Under New Competition Law 
The U.S. government is nearing a decision on whether to approve Nvidia chip sales to Saudi Arabia, a deal that could accelerate AI projects in the region while impacting the kingdom’s relationship with China, which is under increased scrutiny.
US Evaluating Nvidia Chip Sales to Saudi Arabia
As reported by Semafor on Wednesday, citing sources familiar with the situation (as cited by Reuters), the U.S. government is contemplating authorizing Nvidia to sell cutting-edge chips to Saudi Arabia.
This would enable the kingdom to train and operate its most advanced artificial intelligence models.
According to the report, sales of the chips were a major, albeit unofficial, subject at GAIN, the global AI summit in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia Aims to Meet US Security Standards
Several summit attendees, including employees of the Saudi Data and AI Authority, informed Semafor that the kingdom is striving to meet U.S. security standards in order to speed up the purchase of the chips.
The sale of artificial intelligence chips to the United Arab Emirates and other Middle Eastern countries is now subject to a licencing requirement, as part of the new restrictions put in place last year by the Biden administration in an effort to limit China's access to these chips.
According to Yahoo Finance, the Saudi government is reportedly anticipating the shipping of Nvidia H200s, the company's most sophisticated CPUs. One of the first multimodal platforms to employ the H200 was OpenAI's GPT-4o, which could have natural-sounding conversations and respond to both text and images.
Saudi Arabia Cuts Ties with Chinese Firms but Leaves Door Open
Sources familiar with Saudi policy told the media that the kingdom has taken measures to reduce its ties to Chinese companies but has left the door open to China in the event that the US cuts off Saudi Arabia's access to cutting-edge U.S. semiconductors.
A representative from Nvidia chose not to address the story.
"Export control decisions regarding licenses, entity listings and any future policy actions are the subject of a rigorous interagency process including the Departments of Commerce, State, Defense and Energy," the US Department of Commerce stated, declining to comment on specifics.
