Chinese AI lab Moonshot explored renting Nvidia Blackwell clusters in Europe, CNBC reports
Chinese artificial intelligence lab Moonshot held talks to rent clusters of more than 8,000 Nvidia Blackwell GPUs from European cloud providers, according to a CNBC report. The discussions leverage a regulatory gap in U.S. export controls, which ban physical chip shipments to China but do not broadly bar Chinese firms from accessing compute remotely through overseas data centers.
Chinese artificial intelligence startup Moonshot, the developer of the Kimi AI models, has explored renting advanced Nvidia Blackwell computing capacity from European cloud providers this year, CNBC reported. The talks reportedly centered on securing clusters of 8,000 or more Blackwell GPUs, primarily intended for inference workloads and potentially model training.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
To offset the risks associated with potential future regulatory crackdowns, one proposed arrangement involved Moonshot offering upfront payments 30% to 50% higher than those paid by non-Chinese customers. No finalized or completed deal has been confirmed.[2][5][6]
While U.S. export controls prohibit physical shipments of advanced Blackwell processors into China, renting computing capacity from foreign data centers remains permitted under existing regulations. In July, the White House said Moonshot had already remotely accessed Blackwell hardware through a facility in Thailand, and lawmakers in Washington are currently weighing legislation to close the remote-access loophole.[3][5][6]
Key facts
- Moonshot held discussions to rent clusters of 8,000 or more Nvidia Blackwell GPUs from European cloud providers, primarily for inference and potentially training, CNBC reported.
- One proposal involved Moonshot paying an upfront premium of 30% to 50% compared to non-Chinese customers.
- No completed deal between Moonshot and European providers has been confirmed.
- U.S. export curbs ban direct shipments of Blackwell chips to China but do not prohibit Chinese firms from renting compute overseas.
- The White House stated in July that Moonshot had accessed Blackwell chips via a data center in Thailand.
- Washington is considering legislation to close the overseas remote-access loophole.
Sources · 5 sources
- *B
*Walter Bloomberg@DeItaonePost on X ·
CHINESE AI LAB MOONSHOT TURNED TO EUROPE FOR NVIDIA BLACKWELL ACCESS AMID U.S. CHINA CURBS - CNBC
Open source - SB
Shay Boloor@StockSavvyShayPost on X ·
Chinese AI lab Moonshot is reportedly looking to rent more than 8,000 $NVDA Blackwell GPUs from European neoclouds with one proposal offering a ~40% upfront premium. That premium tells you how scarce frontier compute still is. https://t.co/KWDIuRflrM
Open source - EV
Evan@StockMKTNewzPost on X ·
CHINESE AI LAB MOONSHOT HAS SOUGHT ACCESS TO NVIDIA $NVDA'S TOP CHIPS THROUGH DATA CENTERS IN EUROPE The maker of the Kimi AI models discussed renting Nvidia Blackwell capacity from cloud providers in Europe this year, per CNBC US export controls block those chips from being shipped to China, but renting access to them overseas is still a loophole under current law. In July, the White House said Moonshot had already accessed Blackwell chips through a facility in Thailand.
Open source - CN
CNBC@CNBCPost on X ·
Chinese AI lab Moonshot turned to Europe for Nvidia Blackwell access amid U.S. China curbs, sources tell CNBC https://t.co/F6FISAgz4D
Open source - WS
Wall St Engine@wallstenginePost on X ·
MOONSHOT SEEKS $NVDA BLACKWELL ACCESS IN EUROPE Chinese AI lab Moonshot, the developer of Kimi, has held talks to rent clusters of 8,000+ Nvidia Blackwell GPUs from European 🇪🇺 neoclouds, primarily for inference and potentially training, CNBC reports. The White House previously accused Moonshot of accessing Blackwell chips remotely through a data center in Thailand. U.S. export controls restrict shipments of these chips to China, but don't broadly prohibit Chinese companies from renting the same computing power through overseas cloud providers. One proposed arrangement reportedly involved Moonshot paying 30%-50% more upfront than non-Chinese customers, reflecting the risk of future restrictions. No completed deal has been confirmed.
Open source - *B
*Walter Bloomberg@DeItaonePost on X ·
CHINESE AI LAB SEEKS NVIDIA BLACKWELL CHIPS THROUGH EUROPEAN DATA CENTERS China's Moonshot AI has reportedly explored renting Nvidia's advanced Blackwell computing capacity in Europe, potentially circumventing US restrictions on chip exports to China. According to CNBC, discussions included access to clusters of 8,000 or more Blackwell GPUs, with Moonshot potentially offering 30%–50% higher upfront payments than non-Chinese customers. US export controls restrict physical chip shipments to China, but remote access through overseas cloud providers remains a regulatory gap. Washington is considering legislation to close that loophole.
Open source