TL;DR
The New York Times reported on September 9, 2026, citing two people familiar with the matter, that the US Department of Justice is investigating whether NVIDIA tried to circumvent antitrust review, focusing on NVIDIA's $17 billion deal with AI chip startup Groq.
Event overview
On September 9, 2026, The New York Times reported, citing two people familiar with the matter, that the US Department of Justice is investigating whether NVIDIA tried to circumvent antitrust review. The probe involves the $17 billion deal NVIDIA announced in December 2025 with AI chip startup Groq. Under the agreement, NVIDIA obtained a non-exclusive license to Groq's chip technology and absorbed executives including Groq founder Jonathan Ross. US regulators said such "de facto acquisition" behavior could stifle competition in the AI chip industry and reinforce NVIDIA's dominance.
Key facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Report date | September 9, 2026 (NYT, citing sources) |
| Investigating body | US Department of Justice |
| Subject | Whether NVIDIA circumvented antitrust review |
| Deal involved | $17 billion NVIDIA–Groq agreement (December 2025) |
| Deal terms | Non-exclusive license to Groq chip tech; absorbed Groq founder and executives |
| Regulatory view | "De facto acquisition" may stifle AI chip competition |
| Possible outcome | Reuters: fines possible, deal rescission unlikely |