Core Viewpoint - NVIDIA has developed a chip location verification technology aimed at preventing its AI chips from being smuggled to restricted countries, responding to U.S. government concerns about chip control [3][10]. Group 1: Technology Overview - The chip location verification technology is currently in the internal demonstration phase and will be offered as a software add-on for customers to install [5]. - This software leverages the confidential computing capabilities of NVIDIA's GPUs and will help customers monitor the overall performance of their chips [5]. - The software will utilize latency data from the chips communicating with NVIDIA servers to determine their location, achieving accuracy comparable to other internet location services [5]. Group 2: Software Features - NVIDIA plans to adopt an open-source model for this software, allowing external security researchers to conduct thorough reviews [7]. - The software will not allow NVIDIA to remotely control or intervene in registered systems, with telemetry data being in "read-only mode" [9]. - There is no "kill switch" feature in NVIDIA GPUs that would enable the company or external parties to disable the chips remotely [9]. Group 3: Regulatory Response - If the technology is officially launched, it will address the demands from the U.S. White House and bipartisan lawmakers to prevent AI chips from being smuggled to certain countries [10]. - The U.S. Department of Justice has previously filed criminal lawsuits against smuggling rings attempting to export over $160 million worth of NVIDIA chips to a specific country, increasing calls for chip control [10]. Group 4: Concerns and Reactions - The push for chip location verification technology has raised concerns among foreign regulators about potential "backdoor" access, allowing the U.S. to bypass chip security measures [11]. - Despite these concerns, NVIDIA has denied the existence of any backdoor and asserted its capability to implement the location verification feature without compromising product security [12].