Can SambaNova Become the Next Breakout AI Chipmaker?

The Trump administration is developing a new export control rule targeting a significant loophole in chip restrictions: Chinese AI firms' ability to access advanced semiconductors remotely through data centers in Thailand, Singapore, and other countries. The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security is crafting this replacement to the Biden-era AI diffusion rule, which Trump's team had pledged to undo. The new rule could be shared with industry for feedback as early as September.

NVIDIA expanded its NVLink Fusion platform with NVHBM, a custom high-bandwidth memory technology that integrates the memory controller into the HBM base die rather than the XPU die. This design delivers up to 30% greater memory bandwidth, 15% lower HBM power consumption, and frees 25% more compute area on the XPU compared to standard HBM4E. Amazon's Annapurna Labs will be the first to implement NVHBM in its next-generation Trainium4 chips, enabling closer integration between custom AI accelerators and NVIDIA GPUs.

SoftBank is negotiating to acquire a majority stake in 1X Technologies, an OpenAI-backed humanoid robot developer, at a $6 billion valuation. The deal would provide 1X with additional funding after the 12-year-old startup fell short of its $1 billion fundraising target last fall, raising less than half that amount. The investment aligns with SoftBank's robotics strategy and would give 1X runway to deploy soft-bodied robots in customer homes for household tasks.

Nvidia projects quarterly revenue of $108 billion in its next earnings report, up from a record $96.2 billion in the most recent quarter. The company's data center business, which generated $89 billion in the latest quarter, continues to drive growth. If realized, Nvidia would join Amazon, Apple, and Alphabet as companies that have exceeded $100 billion in quarterly revenue.