Key Highlights
- Sharetronic Data Technology in Shenzhen revealed invoices totaling $92 million for servers with restricted Nvidia chips
- The hardware includes Nvidia H100 and H200 processors, which have required U.S. government authorization for China sales since 2022
- Company shares plummeted almost 10% following the revelation
- Both Super Micro and Dell report no transaction history with Sharetronic
- The announcement emerged the same day federal prosecutors charged a Super Micro co-founder with illegal chip trafficking to China
An AI data center operator based in Shenzhen, Sharetronic Data Technology, has revealed documentation indicating the acquisition of 276 Super Micro servers equipped with Nvidia H100 and H200 processors. These servers carry a combined price tag of 632 million yuan, approximately $92 million.
Since 2022, Washington has prohibited the sale of H100 and H200 chips to China without explicit governmental approval. These export controls were implemented to curtail China’s advancement in artificial intelligence technologies with potential military applications.
Reporters at Bloomberg News uncovered the invoices within documents submitted to Chinese regulatory bodies. The paperwork, bearing dates from May and June of the previous year, indicates transactions between Sharetronic and one of its subsidiary companies.
This revelation surfaced on the identical date that U.S. law enforcement indicted Yih-Shyan “Wally” Liaw, a Super Micro Computer co-founder, for allegedly orchestrating the illegal export of Nvidia-based servers valued at $2.5 billion to Chinese entities. Liaw has entered a not guilty plea.
Shares of Sharetronic experienced a decline of nearly 10% on the Shenzhen exchange Friday, ranking as the poorest performer within the MSCI Asia Index during that trading session.
Corporate Responses
Super Micro stated it maintains no sales record with Sharetronic and confirmed the entity is not among its clientele. Dell similarly reported discovering “no record of the alleged sales.” Nvidia indicated that its customers receive explicit instructions prohibiting the delivery of regulated servers absent U.S. government clearance.
In its official response, Sharetronic asserted that all its hardware originated from “legal and compliant channels.” The company avoided direct commentary regarding the invoices and refused to provide additional information about equipment procurement, citing obligations to protect client confidentiality.
Sharetronic also categorically denied maintaining any commercial relationship with Super Micro.
The source from which Sharetronic procured these servers remains uncertain. The invoice documentation does not specify the initial vendor.
Nvidia Partnership Status
Sharetronic’s joint venture entity, Guangzhou Fcloud Technology, maintains official status as an Nvidia Cloud Partner, joining only seven other Chinese firms with this designation. This certification indicates Nvidia’s recognition of the company’s capability to deliver secure infrastructure for artificial intelligence operations.
Following this designation, Sharetronic publicized intentions to acquire hardware totaling 32.2 billion yuan.
The discovered invoices additionally documented a smaller quantity of 32 Dell PowerEdge XE9680 servers. Every hardware configuration compatible with these server models fell under U.S. export restrictions by the dates shown on the invoices.
Federal prosecutors have not disclosed whether Sharetronic appears among the unidentified Chinese buyers referenced in the Super Micro criminal case.
