Saudi Aramco Unveils New Initiatives to Drive Digital Development

Saudi Aramco unveiled on Tuesday new initiatives aimed at driving the development and deployment of advanced digital solutions across its operations. (SPA)
Saudi Aramco unveiled on Tuesday new initiatives aimed at driving the development and deployment of advanced digital solutions across its operations. (SPA)
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Saudi Aramco Unveils New Initiatives to Drive Digital Development

Saudi Aramco unveiled on Tuesday new initiatives aimed at driving the development and deployment of advanced digital solutions across its operations. (SPA)
Saudi Aramco unveiled on Tuesday new initiatives aimed at driving the development and deployment of advanced digital solutions across its operations. (SPA)

Saudi Aramco, one of the world’s leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, unveiled on Tuesday new initiatives aimed at driving the development and deployment of advanced digital solutions across its operations.

They were announced during the Global AI Summit (GAIN), which began at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh.

Aramco's Executive Vice President of Technology & Innovation, Ahmad Al-Khowaiter, said: “New digital technologies such as generative AI and the Industrial Internet of Things are expected to transform not only how we work, but also our commercial environment.”

“Aramco is pioneering the use of these technologies at an industrial scale to add significant value across our operations. Our history of innovation inspires us to continue harnessing emerging technologies and help realize the Kingdom’s ambitions to become a global AI leader,” he added.

During the Global AI Summit, Aramco signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with Cerebras Systems and FuriosaAI to explore collaboration in supercomputing and AI. Another MoU with Rebellions focuses on the potential deployment of the company’s Neural Processing Unit chips in Aramco’s data centers to enhance digital infrastructure and drive advanced AI innovations.

Aramco also signed an MoU with SambaNova Systems to explore ways to accelerate AI capabilities, innovation, and adoption across the Kingdom.

In addition, Aramco announced the deployment of an AI supercomputer, one of the first systems of its kind in the region. Powered by some of the most powerful NVIDIA graphical processing units (GPUs), it is designed to accelerate complex computing tasks, such as analyzing drilling plans and geological data to recommend optimal well placement.

Aramco has also collaborated with Qualcomm Technologies on the initial deployment of industrial generative AI solutions on the edge, aimed at enhancing facility monitoring, predictive maintenance, and the use of autonomous drones.

These initiatives are part of Aramco’s broader strategy to adopt cutting-edge digital solutions across its business. This builds on the company’s launch of the Saudi Accelerated Innovation Lab (SAIL) — a national engine to transform innovative ideas into fully functional products — and its Global AI Corridor ecosystem.

Aramco’s approach has led to the creation of its first large language model (LLM) for industrial AI applications and the launch of the Eye on AI Program, which aims to establish robust AI cybersecurity governance, equip users with essential cybersecurity skills, and adapt to the rapidly evolving digital landscape.



Nvidia to Resume Sales of Highly Desired AI Computer Chips to China

President and CEO of Nvidia Corporation Jensen Huang delivers a speech during the Computex 2025 exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP)
President and CEO of Nvidia Corporation Jensen Huang delivers a speech during the Computex 2025 exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP)
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Nvidia to Resume Sales of Highly Desired AI Computer Chips to China

President and CEO of Nvidia Corporation Jensen Huang delivers a speech during the Computex 2025 exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP)
President and CEO of Nvidia Corporation Jensen Huang delivers a speech during the Computex 2025 exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, May 19, 2025. (AP)

Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang says the technology giant has won approval from the Trump administration to sell its advanced H20 computer chips used to develop artificial intelligence to China.

The news came in a company blog post late Monday, which stated that the US government had "assured" Nvidia that licenses would be granted — and that the company "hopes to start deliveries soon." Shares of the California-based chipmaker were up over 4% by midday Tuesday.

Huang also spoke about the coup on China’s state-run CGTN television network, in remarks shown on X.

"Today, I'm announcing that the US government has approved for us filing licenses to start shipping H20s," Huang told reporters in Beijing.

He added that half of the world's AI researchers are in China. "It's so innovative and dynamic here in China that it's really important that American companies are able to compete and serve the market here," he said.

Huang recently met with President Donald Trump and other US policymakers and is in Beijing this week to attend a supply chain conference and speak with Chinese officials. The broadcast showed Huang meeting with Ren Hongbin, the head of the China Council for Promotion of International Trade, host of the China International Supply Chain Expo, which Huang was attending. Nvidia is an exhibitor.

Nvidia has profited enormously from the rapid adoption of AI, becoming the first company to have its market value surpass $4 trillion last week. However, the trade rivalry between the US and China has been weighing heavily on the industry.

Here's what we know.

What is Nvidia's H20 chip? The H20 graphics processing unit, or GPU, is an advanced AI chip — a type of device used to build and update a range of AI systems. But it's less powerful than Nvidia's top semiconductors today.

That's because the H20 chip was developed to specifically comply with US restrictions for exports of AI chips to China. Nvidia's most advanced chips, which carry more computing power, are off-limits to the Chinese market.

Washington has been tightening controls on exports of advanced technology to China for years, citing concerns that know-how meant for civilian use could be deployed for military purposes. And in January, before Trump began his second term in office, President Joe Biden's administration launched a new framework for exporting advanced computer chips used to develop AI in an attempt to balance national security concerns about the technology with the economic interests of producers and other countries.

Restrictions on sales of advanced chips to China have been central to the AI race between the world's two largest economic powers, but such controls are also controversial.

Proponents argue that these restrictions are necessary to slow China down enough to allow US companies to keep their lead. Meanwhile, opponents say the export controls have loopholes and could still spur innovation. The emergence of China’s DeepSeek AI chatbot in January particularly renewed concerns over how China might use advanced chips to help develop its own AI capabilities.

What's happened since Trump took office? In April, the White House announced that it would restrict sales of Nvidia’s H20 chips to China — as well as MI308 chips from rival chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices with the Trump administration again citing national security.

At the time, Nvidia said these tighter export controls would cost the company an extra $5.5 billion and Huang and other technology leaders have been lobbying Trump to reverse the restrictions since. They've argued that such limits hinder US competition in a sector in one of the world’s largest markets for technology, and have also warned that US export controls could end up pushing other countries toward China’s AI technology.

Monday's announcement from Nvidia signals that its lobbying efforts paid off. White House AI and crypto adviser David Sacks told Bloomberg on Tuesday that allowing Nvidia to restart Chinese sales of its H20 chip would help the US better compete abroad, particularly with Chinese chipmaker Huawei Technologies.

Meanwhile, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC on Tuesday that the renewed sale of H20 chips in China was linked to a trade agreement made between the two countries on rare earth magnets and maintained that the administration was also reversing course from April's restrictions because the US still doesn't sell China "our best stuff."

Still, calls for restrictions on advanced chip exports to China have persisted among US lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

Just last week, Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Jim Banks wrote a letter to Huang noting that the hardware powering advanced AI "is of immense strategic importance" and again warned that this kind of technology could be used to accelerate Beijing’s effort to modernize its military if exported freely. US lawmakers have also proposed that chips subject to export controls should be tracked, to ensure they don’t end up in the wrong places.

Beyond export controls, California-based Nvidia — like other tech giants today — has been caught in the crosshairs of Trump’s tariff wars abroad, particularly amid America's tit-for-tat levies with China. But Beijing and Washington recently agreed to pull back some non-tariff restrictions. China says it’s approving permits for rare earth magnets to be exported to the US, while Washington has lifted curbs on chip design software and jet engines.

Nvidia and its CEO have also garnered Trump’s favor in recent months. In April, the company announced that it would be producing its AI chips in the US for the first time, starting with more than one million square feet of manufacturing space to build and test its specialized Blackwell chips in Arizona and AI supercomputers in Texas.

Trump was quick to applaud Nvidia's move. He introduced Huang as a "smart cookie" who was helping bring jobs to the US at an "Investing in America" event held at the White House later that month.

Similar to Nvidia, AMD is now also poised to restart Chinese sales of its MI308 chips. The California-based company said in a statement that the Commerce Department was moving forward with license applications for these exports to China, and that it plans to resume shipments as those licenses are approved.