U.S. clears NVIDIA H200 exports to China

The United States has cleared roughly 10 Chinese companies to buy Nvidia’s H200 artificial intelligence chips, according to a Reuters report published on May 14, citing three people familiar with the matter. The approvals mark the first concrete sign that Washington’s January shift from a blanket presumption of denial to case-by-case review for some advanced AI chips is being used in practice. Nvidia has not announced shipments, and Reuters reported that no deliveries had been made as of May 14. Lenovo told Reuters it was among the companies approved to sell H200 in China as part of Nvidia’s export license. ### Which companies were cleared to buy or distribute the chips? Reuters reported that Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance and JD.com were among the Chinese companies approved to purchase H200 chips. The same report said a handful of distributors, including Lenovo and Foxconn, were also approved. Lenovo said in a statement to Reuters that it “is one of several companies approved to sell H200 in China as part of Nvidia’s export license.” The U.S. (finance.yahoo.com) Commerce Department declined comment, Reuters reported, while Nvidia and the named Chinese companies did not respond to requests for comment. ### What exactly changed in U.S. export policy? (finance.yahoo.com) The Bureau of Industry and Security said on January 13 that it had revised its licensing policy for semiconductor exports to China so that applications involving Nvidia H200, AMD MI325X and similar chips would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. BIS said the rule followed President Donald Trump’s December 8, 2025 announcement that the United States would allow H200-class products to be shipped to approved customers in China. (finance.yahoo.com) The Federal Register published the final rule on January 15, making the change effective that day. The rule said exporters must certify that there is sufficient U.S. supply, that production for China will not divert foundry capacity from U.S. users, that the recipient has adequate security procedures, and that the product undergoes independent third-party testing in the United States to verify performance specifications. (bis.gov) ### Why is the H200 treated differently from the most restricted chips? The Federal Register rule said the case-by-case policy applies to advanced computing commodities with performance below specified thresholds, identifying the Nvidia H200 as an example. The rule kept a presumption of denial for certain other destinations and entities tied to Macau or countries in the D:5 group. (federalregister.gov) Nvidia describes the H200 as a data-center GPU built for generative AI and high-performance computing. On its product page, Nvidia says the chip is based on the Hopper architecture and includes 141 gigabytes of HBM3e memory with 4.8 terabytes per second of memory bandwidth. ### If Washington approved the sales, why have no chips moved? Reuters reported that not a single H200 delivery had been made as of May 14 despite the U.S. approvals. (federalregister.gov) The report said the deal remained in limbo as Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang traveled with a U.S. delegation to Beijing and sought a breakthrough. (nvidia.com) The Wall Street Journal reported on May 16 that President Trump said China had not yet bought Nvidia’s H200 chips even after the United States cleared the way for purchases. Reuters also reported that Huang told China’s state broadcaster CCTV he hoped Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would build on their relationship during talks in Beijing. (finance.yahoo.com) ### What happens next before sales become real shipments? Reuters reported that approved buyers can purchase either directly from Nvidia or through authorized intermediaries, and that each approved customer can buy up to 75,000 chips under the U.S. licensing terms. That means the next visible step is an announced order, an import approval from the Chinese side, or a disclosed shipment from Nvidia or one of the approved distributors. (wsj.com) May 16 statements from President Trump and earlier comments from Jensen Huang suggest the issue remains tied to broader U.S.-China talks rather than a completed commercial rollout. Until Nvidia, Commerce, or a named buyer confirms deliveries, the clearest public record remains the January BIS rule and the May 14 Reuters report identifying the approved firms and purchase limits. (wsj.com) (finance.yahoo.com)