AMD Faces $800M Cost Due to Export License Issues

AMD recently disclosed that potential export restrictions on its MI308 artificial intelligence accelerators to China and other countries could result in costs of up to $800 million. Following the announcement, AMD's stock closed down more than 7% on Wednesday.

In a regulatory filing submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), AMD stated that while the company plans to apply for the necessary export licenses, there is no guarantee that such approvals will be granted. The new U.S. licensing rules impact the export of certain semiconductor products and may affect AMD's inventory levels, procurement plans, and related reserves.

AMD is a globally recognized semiconductor manufacturer, and its AMD Instinct MI300 series accelerators are widely used in artificial intelligence (AI) workloads and high-performance computing (HPC) applications. According to AMD's earnings report from February, the company achieved record revenue of $25.8 billion in 2024. However, the newly implemented export controls could pose challenges to its growth trajectory.

Rival chipmaker Intel also issued a statement on Tuesday, indicating it expects to record approximately $5.5 billion in quarterly charges related to export restrictions on its H20 graphics processors. Meanwhile, NVIDIA's annual report highlighted China as its fourth-largest market by revenue, following the United States, Singapore, and Taiwan. For the fiscal year ending in January, over half of NVIDIA's revenue came from U.S.-based customers.