NVIDIA Gains US Approval to Export H200 AI Chips to China

The United States will allow NVIDIA to export its H200 AI chips to China and other countries, under a new arrangement announced by President Donald Trump. The deal stipulates a 25% fee on the sale of the high-performance GPUs. 

The H200 chip—considered NVIDIA’s second-most advanced AI processor behind Blackwell GPUs—can now be exported to vetted Chinese customers, contingent on national security safeguards and approval from the US Department of Commerce. Trump said he notified Chinese President Xi Jinping of the decision, and claimed Xi “responded positively.” 

The decision comes after weeks of deliberation over export controls and follows a recent meeting between NVIDIA’s chief executive and US officials. Other firms, including AMD and Intel, may become eligible to export their AI chips under similar provisions.

Earlier this year, NVIDIA was authorised to resume shipments of the H20 chips to China, following assurances from the US government that license approvals were underway. AMD, too, secured regulatory approvals to resume shipping its MI308 AI chips to China. 

The 25% fee on sales proceeds of H200 chips will be collected as an import tax when they are shipped from manufacturing sites in Taiwan to the United States for inspection, before onward export.

With this, the US avoids exporting its latest chips, such as the Blackwell or NVIDIA’s Rubin-generation processors, while partially reopening access to the Chinese market. The H200 is more powerful than the older H20, previously permitted but ultimately blocked for Chinese buyers. 

The Chinese government even introduced incentives such as cheaper power for local AI firms willing to ditch NVIDIA chips and buy from regional players like Huawei. This came after complaints from tech giants like Alibaba, ByteDance and Tencent, which faced higher costs after Beijing restricted access to NVIDIA’s AI chips due to US export controls.

For NVIDIA, Trump’s approval could restore access to a massive market, potentially yielding billions in revenue. The shares of the world’s most valuable company rose about 2% in after-hours trading following the announcement.

However, the deal comes as geopolitical uncertainty continues to govern US-China relations. Even if the US relaxes restrictions, China may refuse to allow imports in the same vein as it previously refused to buy the H20 chips on security grounds. As NVIDIA’s CEO, Jensen Huang, admitted shortly before the policy shift, “We don’t know. We have no clue,” whether Chinese customers will accept the H200 under these terms. 

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