- Chipmaker Groq has accused Nvidia of unfair competition, claiming it delays shipments to clients considering other data centre AI processors.
- Former AMD VP Scott Herkelman joined the accusation, labelling Nvidia a “GPU cartel” for monopolistic practices.
- Nvidia denies favouritism.
Chipmaker Groq recently accused Nvidia of unfair competition, alleging it delays shipments to clients using other data centre AI processors concurrently. This remark has drawn industry attention, with former AMD graphics division VP Scott Herkelman adding to the accusations, labelling Nvidia a “GPU cartel,” alleging it engages in monopolistic practices and supply manipulation.
Nvidia denies the allegations.
Herkelman was previously general manager of Nvidia’s GeForce business
Herkelman, who led AMD’s graphics card business from 2016 to 2023 and was previously general manager of Nvidia’s GeForce business from 2012 to 2015, highlighted Nvidia’s alleged behaviour on social media, asserting it withholds shipments from various entities, including data centre clients, OEMs, AIC partners, media, and distributors, a tactic learned from past GeForce partner programs.
Nvidia has been accused of delaying deliveries to customers considering competitors like Groq for AI processors, a practice that Groq CEO Jonathan Ross claims has made customers remain silent or even conceal contacts with competitors.
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Jensen Huang denied favouring specific clients
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang previously denied favouring specific clients, pledging fair distribution of supplies and offering alternative solutions like GPU rentals from cloud service providers to awaiting customers.
Meanwhile, tech giants like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft continue substantial purchases of Nvidia chips while developing their own AI accelerators, intending not to directly compete with Nvidia, being among Nvidia’s largest clients, they are likely to continue placing orders. Herkelman likened Nvidia’s actions to the controversial 2018 GeForce partner program, which was ultimately scrapped, evoking memories of Intel’s similar practices in the 1990s and 2000s to prevent partners from using AMD products.
