Nvidia plans to begin exporting its artificial intelligence (AI) chip, the H200, to China before the Lunar New Year holiday in mid-February next year, Reuters reported on the 22nd (local time), citing three sources.
Nvidia intends to fulfill initial orders using existing inventory, with total shipments expected to range from 5,000 to 10,000 chip modules (approximately 40,000 to 80,000 H200 chips).
Nvidia has informed its Chinese clients of plans to expand new chip production capacity, and, according to the sources, new orders from these facilities will begin to be accepted starting in the second quarter of next year.
However, the sources added that Chinese authorities have not yet approved the purchase of the H200, and there remains significant uncertainty, as the schedule may change depending on the government's decision.
Earlier, on the 8th, President Donald Trump announced that he would allow exports of the H200 chip to China, provided a 25% tariff is imposed. If this export proceeds, it will mark the first H200 chips to enter China. This represents a significant departure from the policy of the previous Joe Biden administration, which had banned exports of advanced AI chips to China on national security grounds.
The H200, part of Nvidia's "Hopper" line, lags behind the company's latest "Blackwell" line but remains a widely used high-performance chip in the AI sector. Reuters explained that the H200 is about six times more powerful than the H20, which Nvidia designed for the Chinese market to comply with U.S. regulations.
Meanwhile, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts) and Representative Gregory Meeks (New York) sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Commerce on the same day, requesting disclosure of the details of the ongoing review and the approval status regarding the export of the H200 chip to China. They also urged the Department of Commerce to provide an assessment of the potential military applications of the chips approved for export and to explain how allied and partner countries are responding to the chip export decision.
Previously, Senator Warren had called for Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to testify before Congress and criticized President Trump's decision to allow H200 exports to China, stating that it "steps on the accelerator for China's pursuit of technological and military dominance and risks weakening America's economic and national security."
The Department of Commerce and Nvidia did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
