Nvidia on Monday unveiled plans to manufacture its most advanced artificial intelligence supercomputer chips entirely within the United States for the first time, marking a new milestone for the tech giant amid intensifying global trade tensions.
According to AFP, the California-based chipmaker will begin producing its top-tier GPUs, known as Blackwell, at TSMC facilities in Arizona. Simultaneously, new supercomputer plants are being developed in Texas through strategic partnerships with manufacturing giants Foxconn and Wistron. Full-scale production is expected to ramp up over the next 12 to 15 months.
“The engines of the world’s AI infrastructure are being built in the United States for the first time,” said Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in a blog post. “Adding American manufacturing helps us better meet the incredible and growing demand for AI chips and supercomputers, strengthens our supply chain and boosts our resiliency.”
The move signals a broader shift in Nvidia’s production strategy. The company aims to manufacture up to half a trillion dollars’ worth of AI infrastructure domestically by the end of the decade through collaborations with TSMC, Foxconn, Wistron, Amkor, and SPIL.
The initiative also received praise from the Biden administration. “Onshoring these industries is good for the American worker, good for the American economy, and good for American national security,” the White House said in a statement quoted by AFP.
This development comes as the United States tightens its restrictions on exporting high-end AI chips to China, citing national security risks. Keeping production onshore could give Washington greater oversight and control over cutting-edge technology used in defence, communications, and consumer electronics.
At the same time, semiconductors have become a focal point in the ongoing trade tensions between the US and China. Speaking aboard Air Force One on Sunday, President Donald Trump reaffirmed plans to implement new tariffs on chips.
“Tariffs on semiconductors… will be in place in the not distant future,” Trump said, as quoted by AFP. “We want to make our chips and semiconductors and other things in our country.”
He added that specific tariff rates would be announced “over the next week,” while Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick indicated they could take effect “in a month or two.”