Nvidia has taken a step forward, opening a shop in China and hiring hundreds of individuals in Beijing to expand a team of researchers working on new autonomous driving technology. Nvidia has been developing AI software and driving automation for more than a decade;

Nvidia Corp. has added hundreds of staff in China this year to enhance its research capabilities and focus on new autonomous driving technologies.

As of February, Nvidia had 29,600 employees in 36 countries, the company said in a filing. In China, it expanded over the past couple of years to now have close to 600 people in Beijing and it recently opened a new office in the Zhongguancun tech hub, according to the people.

Nvidia has added about 200 people in China this year to enhance its research capabilities and focus on new autonomous driving technologies, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday.

As its growth in the region continues, Nvidia hires 200 more staff in China and denies rumors it's cutting off supplies to the country.

Despite mounting trade restrictions, Nvidia (NVDA) is significantly expanding its presence in China, focusing on artificial intelligence chips for autonomous vehicles, Bloomberg reports. Both a Chinese government antitrust investigation and escalating trade tensions between Beijing and Washington complicate the semiconductor giant’s efforts.

Nvidia is entering the self-driving car industry in China, the world’s largest car market. That puts it on a collision course with Tesla.