AI chipmaker Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) has reportedly added hundreds of staff in China this year.

What Happened: Nvidia will now end the year with nearly 4,000 employees, marking a significant increase from the 3,000 at the onset of the year, reported Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.

The increase in workforce in China is aimed at improving the company's research capabilities and focus on new autonomous driving technologies, the report said.

The report said Nvidia has added 200 people to its team of researchers in Beijing working on autonomous driving. People have also been added to the company's after-sales service and networking software development teams.

Nvidia has been developing driving automation and AI software for over a decade, the report noted, while adding that the efforts are yet to yield results.

Why It Matters: Overall, Nvidia had 29,600 employees in 36 countries around the world as of February. The company has been adding more to meet the rising demand for its AI chips.

China has seen a surge in EV sales and companies over the past few years. Autonomous driving technology, therefore, has significant demand in the country.

However, earlier this week, China launched an antitrust investigation centered on Nvidia's acquisition of Israeli networking company Mellanox Technologies, approved in 2020, and its potential violations of China's anti-monopoly laws.

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