A senior official said Singapore contributes only a small share of Nvidia’s revenue, as United States investigates whether Chinese AI startup DeepSeek is obtaining chips through the country.

Nvidia’s revenue from Singapore represents less than 1% of the company’s total income for the period ending October 2024, according to Tan See Leng, Singapore’s second minister for trade and industry.

He informed lawmakers on February 18 that products delivered to Singapore are mainly used by significant enterprises and government entities.

While Nvidia reported that 22% of its revenue for the August to October period was invoiced through Singapore, Tan clarified that this number demonstrates centralized billing practices rather than actual product delivery to the country.

US officials are investigating whether the DeepSeek acquired advanced semiconductors from Nvidia via third parties in Singapore, potentially circumventing export controls.

Nvidia said that it does not believe DeepSeek violated any export restrictions, and Singapore’s customs authorities are cooperating with US officials in this inquiry.

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