What happened
Japanese cloud provider Datasection will acquire Nvidia Blackwell GPUs for data centres in Japan and Australia, with Tencent utilising these facilities. This arrangement enables Tencent to access advanced AI chips, circumventing existing US export controls. Datasection secured investment from Singapore-based First Plus Financial via warrants, following funding challenges from Japanese banks due to Tencent's involvement. Nvidia maintains that enabling approved firms to operate clouds outside controlled nations is crucial for US technology leadership. Concurrently, Tencent is optimising AI operations through software and diversifying its cloud strategy to include CPU-based computing and database services.
Why it matters
This arrangement introduces a control gap in export compliance, increasing exposure for procurement and compliance teams to indirect technology acquisition pathways. The use of third-party cloud providers in non-controlled nations for advanced AI chip access raises due diligence requirements for monitoring the end-use and beneficiaries of restricted technologies. This mechanism reduces the visibility of direct control over technology deployment, shifting the burden of oversight to indirect contractual and operational monitoring. It creates an accountability gap regarding the ultimate beneficiaries of high-performance computing resources.
