BEIJING –
China said on Monday it has launched an investigation into Nvidia Corp. over suspected violations of the country’s anti-monopoly law, in a move widely seen as a retaliatory shot against Washington’s latest curbs on the Chinese chip sector.
The statement from the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announcing the probe did not elaborate on how the U.S. company, known for its artificial intelligence (AI) and gaming chips, might have violated China’s anti-monopoly laws.
It said that the U.S. chipmaker is, in addition, suspected of violating commitments it made during its acquisition of Israeli chip designer Mellanox Technologies under terms outlined in the regulator’s 2020 conditional approval of that deal.
Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company’s shares fell 2.2 per cent in pre-market trading in New York after the …