The United States has authorized about ten Chinese companies to acquire the H200, Nvidia’s second most powerful AI chip, even though no deliveries have been made yet, according to three sources close to the matter cited by Reuters.
The transactions are at a standstill, with Chinese companies pulling out following instructions from Beijing, leaving a major technological agreement in limbo while Nvidia’s CEO seeks to advance the process during the US president’s visit to China this week.
The stakes in this issue are significant, highlighting how technological rivalry between the top two global powers hinders even authorized commercial exchanges, trapping Nvidia, the world’s largest market capitalization, between conflicting national priorities.
Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance, and JD.com are among the companies authorized by the US Department of Commerce to acquire the H200 chips, the sources said anonymously due to the sensitive nature of the matter.
A handful of distributors, including Lenovo and Foxconn, have also been approved, they added.
Buyers can purchase the products directly from Nvidia or through distributors, with each approved customer allowed to buy up to 75,000 chips under US licensing conditions, two sources explained.
The identity of approved buyers, the nature of their relationships with Nvidia and approved distributors, regarding this highly sought-after AI chip, have not been disclosed.
A spokesperson for the US Department of Commerce, responsible for export controls including H200 semiconductors, declined to comment.
The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Development and Reform Commission did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
Lenovo confirmed in a statement to Reuters that the company “is among the companies authorized to sell the H200 in China under Nvidia’s export license.”
Nvidia, Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance, JD.com, and Foxconn did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comments.
TRANSACTIONS IN LIMBO
Despite the agreement, transactions remain suspended due to Beijing’s instructions, partly due to changes from the US side, although the exact nature of these changes is unknown, according to a source.
According to a fourth source, pressure is mounting in Beijing to block or strictly control these orders.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick echoed this view, stating during a Senate hearing last month that “the Chinese central government has not yet allowed them to buy these chips, as it is trying to focus its investments on its domestic industry.”
Beijing’s hesitation reflects a strategic calculation, with China fearing that these imports may compromise its efforts to develop its own AI chips.
While Chinese products still lag behind Nvidia’s, companies like DeepSeek are increasingly emphasizing the use of domestic chips, especially those developed by Huawei.
A multitude of requirements on both sides have so far complicated the process of selling these Nvidia chips in China.
However, in the US, this persistent delay has been welcomed by hardliners against Beijing.
“Any agreement allowing Nvidia to sell more chips to China means fewer Nvidia chips for American companies, and less of a lead for the US over China in AI,” said Chris McGuire, a researcher at the Council on Foreign Relations.
“It is remarkable that President Trump continues to be convinced to prioritize the interests of Nvidia over those of the United States,” he added.
In pre-market trading, Nvidia’s stock rose 2.6% to $231.65 upon this news.
European chip manufacturers also saw a boost, with Infineon gaining 3% and STMicroelectronics rising by 2.18% in Paris.
Dutch semiconductor equipment makers ASML increased by 0.90%, ASM International by 1.2%, and BESI by 2%.
This surge comes as Samsung Electronics surged over 4% to a record level and its rival SK Hynix approached a market capitalization of $1 trillion.
(Reporting by Reuters; French version by Diana Mandia, edited by Augustin Turpin)
