Ukraine's Defense Ministry Intelligence Directorate (GUR) reported finding an Nvidia Jetson Orin module in the remains of a Russian S-71M Monochrome cruise missile, an air-launched weapon with autonomous capabilities that can search for and engage targets using optical sensors and onboard computing.

Photos released by the GUR show a scorched chip stamped with the identifier TE980M-A1, corresponding to a Jetson Orin NX 16GB — a module Nvidia released in early 2023, designed for autonomous systems. The GUR said the component's presence suggests artificial intelligence is being used in the missile, which can reportedly operate either with human oversight or fully autonomously.

The awkward detail: Nvidia closed its Russian offices and stopped direct sales in 2022, before the TE980M-A1 even existed. The chip therefore must have arrived through third-party channels. Nvidia told The Register that Jetson modules are consumer-grade products sold for many purposes, that pre-owned units circulate through numerous resellers, and that it cannot track products after sale — though it acts when customers violate US export controls.

US export rules have restricted advanced chip sales to Russia and China for years, with smuggling and gray-market resales repeatedly documented. The GUR said the find proves current export control regimes aren't working and called for increased sanctions pressure and coordination — while noting the silver lining that Russia's reliance on salvaged foreign consumer silicon shows its own tech manufacturing still isn't up to the task.