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Nvidia will continue sponsoring H-1B visas despite Trump’s new $100,000 fee

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Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has confirmed that the company will keep sponsoring H-1B visas and pay all associated fees, even after President Donald Trump’s recent executive order that added a $100,000 charge per new application, according to Business Insider.

Huang’s internal message sought to reassure foreign employees after confusion rippled through the tech sector, especially among Indian and Chinese professionals who form a large share of H-1B visa holders. The company employs many workers from abroad, and Huang has often noted that nearly half of the world’s AI researchers are Chinese.

“As one of many immigrants at Nvidia, I know the opportunities we’ve found in America have profoundly shaped our lives,” Huang wrote. “The miracle of Nvidia — built by all of you, and by brilliant colleagues around the world — would not be possible without immigration.”

Under Trump’s order, new H-1B applicants cannot enter the U.S. unless their employer pays an additional $100,000 fee. The rule does not affect current visa holders or those who applied before September 21.

H-1B visas enable U.S. firms to hire foreign specialists in technical fields. Lawmakers recently questioned major tech companies about their reliance on H-1B hiring while cutting other jobs.

Huang emphasized that legal immigration remains essential for America’s leadership in technology and innovation, saying the new policy changes reaffirm this principle. Data from USCIS shows that California — home to Nvidia and Silicon Valley — has led the nation in visa applications since 2018.

AI Chipmaker Cerebras Withdraws U.S. IPO Filing After $1.1 Billion Fundraising Round

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Cerebras Systems, the California-based AI chip startup seen as one of the most promising challengers to Nvidia, has withdrawn its planned U.S. initial public offering (IPO), according to a regulatory filing on Friday. The decision takes effect immediately and comes just days after the company closed a massive $1.1 billion funding round.

The move surprised some investors given that U.S. IPO activity has recently rebounded sharply, buoyed by surging enthusiasm for AI-related stocks. Recent debuts, such as Fermi’s data center REIT listing, have drawn strong investor demand, reversing a slump caused by trade-policy and market uncertainty earlier in the year.

Analysts said the withdrawal likely reflects strategic timing rather than weak market sentiment. “Given that Cerebras just very recently completed a sizeable fund raise, it is of no surprise that they are holding off to pursue the IPO at this time,” said Josef Schuster, CEO of IPO research firm IPOX.

Cerebras’ latest financing round—led by Fidelity Management & Research and Atreides Management—valued the company at $8.1 billion and included participation from Tiger Global, Valor Equity Partners, and 1789 Capital, a fund partially linked to Donald Trump Jr.

Despite withdrawing the IPO filing, CEO Andrew Feldman emphasized that the company still intends to go public eventually. “We’re continuing to execute on our roadmap,” he said earlier in the week, noting that Cerebras’ focus remains on scaling production and commercialization of its high-performance AI chips designed to accelerate the training of large models.

The company had initially filed for a Nasdaq listing last year, but the process was delayed by a U.S. national security review of a $335 million investment from G42, an Abu Dhabi-based cloud and AI firm. That review reportedly examined potential concerns about foreign influence and technology transfer.

Industry observers view Cerebras’ decision as a pause, not a retreat. “This is more a company-specific strategic decision and does not tell us anything about the state of U.S. IPO sentiment, which we view as exceptionally strong,” Schuster added.

Founded in Sunnyvale, California, Cerebras Systems specializes in ultra-large AI processors and computing systems, including its flagship Wafer Scale Engine (WSE), a chip designed to massively outperform traditional GPUs in AI workloads. The company has become a key player in the rapidly expanding AI hardware ecosystem—one now defined by fierce competition, colossal valuations, and geopolitical scrutiny.

Samsung and SK Hynix to Supply Chips for OpenAI’s $500 Billion Stargate Project

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Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, South Korea’s top semiconductor manufacturers, have signed letters of intent to supply memory chips for OpenAI’s massive Stargate project, marking a major step in Seoul’s growing role in global artificial intelligence infrastructure.

As part of the deal, OpenAI will collaborate with both companies to build two new AI data centers in South Korea, branded as “Korean-style Stargate,” aligning with President Lee Jae Myung’s goal of turning the country into an AI innovation hub in Asia. The decision leverages South Korea’s strong industrial base and its status as the world’s second-largest ChatGPT subscription market after the United States.

The agreements were announced on Wednesday following a high-profile meeting in Seoul between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, President Lee Jae Myung, and the chairmen of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.

The Stargate project, unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump in January, aims to invest $500 billion into developing next-generation AI infrastructure with global partners such as SoftBank, Oracle, and now the South Korean chip giants. The initiative seeks to secure the computing capacity needed to sustain AI’s rapid growth and maintain U.S. leadership in the field.

South Korea’s presidential adviser Kim Yong-beom revealed that OpenAI plans to order 900,000 semiconductor wafers by 2029 and establish joint ventures with Samsung and SK Hynix to operate two 20-megawatt-capacity data centers domestically.

“The significant part of the Stargate project would be impossible without memory chips from the two companies,” said Kim.

He added that South Korea may also participate in financing the project.

Altman, in his remarks, emphasized the strategic importance of Korea:

“Korea has an industrial base like nowhere else in the world that is critical for the development of AI. We’re very excited to build Stargate Korea with Samsung and Hynix to support the sovereign AI needs of the country.”

Together, Samsung and SK Hynix control about 70% of the global DRAM market and nearly 80% of the HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) market. HBM technology, introduced in 2013, stacks chips vertically to save space, boost performance, and reduce power consumption, making it vital for AI data processing.

Analysts estimate that 900,000 wafers of advanced DRAM could be worth more than 100 trillion won ($70 billion), though prices may fluctuate depending on market conditions.

In addition to the memory supply deals:

  • Samsung SDS, an IT services affiliate, signed a partnership with OpenAI to develop and operate AI data centers under the Stargate framework.

  • Samsung Heavy Industries and Samsung C&T will collaborate on floating offshore data centers, designed to reduce cooling costs and carbon emissions.

Meanwhile, Google has also been in talks with several South Korean companies to explore potential AI collaborations. In June, SK Group announced a 7 trillion won investment, including $4 billion from Amazon Web Services, to build another major data center in the country.

Despite optimism about AI’s transformative potential, some investors remain cautious, citing the risk of a tech infrastructure bubble as companies rush to build large-scale data facilities.

The Stargate project, delayed earlier by prolonged negotiations and site selection, is now poised to gain new momentum through this South Korea partnership, reinforcing the nation’s position at the heart of the global AI supply chain.