(Reuters) – Chinese state-backed companies are using cloud services offered by Amazon (AMZN.O) and its rivals to access advanced U.S. semiconductor and artificial intelligence capabilities that they would not otherwise be able to obtain, recent bidding documents show.
Providing access to such technology through the cloud does not violate U.S. regulations.
A spokesman for Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon's cloud business, said: “AWS complies with all applicable U.S. laws, including trade laws, in providing AWS services inside and outside China.”
According to documents reviewed by Reuters, the list of Chinese entities that sought access to restricted U.S. technology through the cloud includes:
Entities that access, or have expressed an interest in accessing, AI models and computing power via AWS:
1. Zhejiang Research Institute
The state-run research institute has developed its own large-scale language model, GeoGPT, and said in bidding documents in April that it intended to spend 184,000 yuan ($25,760) to buy AWS cloud computing services after its AI models could not get enough computing power from Hong Kong's Alibaba (9988.HK). The institute told Reuters it had not gone through with the purchase but did not give a reason why. Alibaba's cloud unit, AliCloud, did not respond to a request for comment. Reuters could not confirm whether the purchase had been completed.
2. National Innovation Center for EDA
The state-run agency, which helps Chinese companies create chip blueprints for mass production, said in bidding documents in April that it bought an overseas AWS account for 600,000 yuan to access “Cloude 3,” an AI model developed by Anthropic. Anthropic said it does not support or allow customers or end users in China to access Cloude. The center did not respond to a request for comment.
Organizations accessing advanced US-made chips through AWS:
1. Shenzhen University
According to bidding documents from March, Shenzhen University spent 200,000 yuan on an AWS account to access Nvidia's (NVDA.O) cloud servers and use its A100 and H100 chips for an unspecified project, even though the United States has banned the export of two Nvidia chips to China.
According to the documents, Shenzhen University obtained the service through an intermediary, Yunda Technology Co. Ltd. The university and Yunda Technology did not respond to requests for comment.
Nvidia did not respond to a request for comment on the Shenzhen University spending or its dealings with other Chinese companies.
2. Fujian Chuanzheng Communication College
The Fujian provincial government-backed college spent 85,000 yuan last August for an AWS account that gave it access to a cluster of more than 4,000 Nvidia A100 chips. The supplier was Xiamen Hanwei Software Technology Co., Ltd., according to bidding documents from August.
The university said in its tender documents that the purchase aims to “keep up with the latest trends in cloud computing technology and enhance the quality of talent training and professional development in cloud computing at educational institutions.”
The university and Xiamen Hanwei did not respond to requests for comment. An AWS spokesperson said, “The majority of this small bid was for skills training, and the small portion of the cloud services did not use the restricted AI chips.”
Entities that access or have expressed an interest in accessing OpenAI tools via Microsoft Azure
1. Chongqing Changan Automobile (000625.SZ)Open a new tabThe state-owned automaker said in May last year it was looking for Microsoft (MSFT.O)Open a new tab authorized retailers that could set up Azure OpenAI accounts and integrate generative AI technology into its systems and applications. The company did not respond to a request for comment on whether the deal had closed. Microsoft did not respond to a request for comment and Reuters was unable to confirm whether the deal had closed.
2. Sichuan University
Sichuan University said in April it would build a generative AI platform to help make the project a reality and would purchase 40 million Azure OpenAI tokens. The supplier was Sichuan Xuedong Science and Technology Co., Ltd., according to bidding documents from May. The Chinese company and Microsoft did not respond to requests for comment.
OpenAI said in a statement that its services are not supported in China and that Azure OpenAI operates under Microsoft policies. The company did not comment on the bid.
Entities that have access to, or have expressed an interest in accessing, U.S. chips via cloud services
1. Suzhou Institute of Advanced Studies, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC)
USTC Labs said in a March filing that it wanted to rent 500 cloud servers, each equipped with eight Nvidia A100 chips, for an unclear purpose.
The bid was made by Hefei Advanced Computing Center Operation and Management Co Ltd, according to April procurement documents, but the documents did not name the cloud services provider and Reuters was unable to verify what it was.
The U.S. Department of Commerce added USTC to the Entity List in May 2024 for acquiring U.S. technology related to quantum computing that could benefit China's military and for its involvement in its nuclear development program.
The USTC did not respond to a request for comment about the transaction and its inclusion on the Entity List.
2. Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech)
The university's computer science department paid 196,000 yuan in April for an unspecified purpose to Shenzhen Yunding Technology Co., Ltd. for four months' use of a server equipped with eight NVIDIA A100 chips.
The university's Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering was added to the unverified list in February 2022, meaning parties doing business with the department must take additional compliance steps to address U.S. concerns about potential national security risks.
SUSTech and Shenzhen Yunbing did not respond to requests for comment.
3. Tsinghua University
One of the government-linked companies that is the most frequent buyer of banned Nvidia chips said it plans to spend about 500,000 yuan in November 2023 to rent more than 10 servers with eight Nvidia A100 chips each to provide AI computing power for unspecified purposes. The contract was awarded to Beijing Parallel Technology Co., according to a Reuters investigation. Neither company responded to requests for comment.
4. China Coal Research Institute
The institute, a major research and development hub for China's coal industry, said in June it wanted to buy four servers equipped with Nvidia A100 chips. The institute did not respond to a request for comment, and Reuters could not verify whether the purchase had actually gone ahead.
5. China National Knowledge Infrastructure
China National Knowledge Infrastructure Organization, which runs the country's largest academic database, said it wanted to buy a three-year cloud-computing account that would give it access to the computing power of Nvidia A100s. The bid was won by Inner Mongolia Tongfang Exploration Technology Co Ltd, according to a Reuters investigation. Neither company responded to requests for comment.
(1 dollar = 7.1429 Chinese yuan)
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Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Editing by Kim Mi-yeon and Muralikumar Anantharaman
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