HOME > AFP-JIJI PRESS NEWS JOURNAL > Article
Nvidia says it will resume sales of 'H20' AI chips to China
US tech giant Nvidia announced Tuesday it will resume sales of its H20 artificial intelligence chips to China after Washington pledged to remove licensing restrictions that had halted exports.
The California-based company produces some of the world's most advanced semiconductors but cannot ship its most cutting-edge chips to China due to concerns that Beijing could use them to enhance military capabilities.
Nvidia developed the H20 -- a less powerful version of its AI processing units -- specifically for export to China. However, that plan stalled when the Trump administration tightened export licensing requirements in April.
The US government has assured Nvidia that licenses will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon, the company said in a statement Tuesday, adding it was filing applications to sell the Nvidia H20 GPU again.
CEO Jensen Huang, wearing his trademark black leather jacket, told reporters in a video published by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV: I'm looking forward to shipping H20s very soon, and so I'm very happy with that very, very good news.
Defending the policy change, Trump's AI Czar David Sacks told CNBC the H20 was a deprecated chip that is not anywhere close to the state of the art.
He said the reversal on the H20 came because Nvidia's Chinese rival Huawei was making huge strides and could potentially threaten Nvidia's market dominance.
China represents a crucial market for Nvidia, but recent US export restrictions have intensified competition from local players like homegrown champion Huawei.
We don't want to sell China our latest greatest technology, but I do think we at least want to make it a little bit difficult for Huawei, Sacks said.
Sacks also said that the decision was linked to ongoing trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing that are locked in a bitter trade feud.
Beijing has criticized Washington's curbs as unfair and designed to hinder its development.
- 'Abrupt shifts' -
Zhang Guobin, founder of Chinese specialist website eetrend.com, said the resumption would bring substantial revenue growth, making up for losses caused by the previous ban.
It would also ease trade friction impacts on the global semiconductor supply chain, he told AFP.
However, he noted Chinese firms would remain focused on domestic chip development, adding that the Trump administration has been prone to abrupt policy shifts, making it difficult to gauge how long such an opening might endure.
Huang will attend a major supply chain gathering Wednesday, according to event organizers, his third trip to China this year, CCTV reported.
During an April visit to Beijing, Huang told Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng he looked favorably upon the potential of the Chinese economy and was willing to continue to plow deeply into the Chinese market and play a positive role in promoting US-China trade cooperation, state news agency Xinhua reported.
The tightened US export curbs come as China's economy wavers, with domestic consumers reluctant to spend and a prolonged property sector crisis weighing on growth.
President Xi Jinping has called for greater self-reliance amid increasing external uncertainty.
The Financial Times reported in May that Nvidia was planning to build a research and development center in Shanghai, though neither Nvidia nor city authorities confirmed the project to AFP.
China's economy grew 5.2 percent in the second quarter, official data showed Tuesday, as analysts had predicted strong exports despite trade war pressures.
(2025/07/16 16:58)
Click Here for Japanese TranslationAFP-JIJI PRESS NEWS JOURNAL
- 07/16 19:08 India-Pakistan conflict hits shared love of film, music
- 07/16 18:45 Syrian forces accused of 'executions' in Druze area as Israel launches strikes
- 07/16 18:42 Trump says Ukraine should not target Moscow
- 07/16 17:01 Cuban minister resigns after downplaying poverty
- 07/16 16:58 Nvidia says it will resume sales of 'H20' AI chips to China
- 07/16 16:56 Trump says any 'credible' Epstein files should be released
- 07/15 18:47 US ice cream makers to scoop out synthetic dyes under RFK Jr. push
- 07/15 18:44 Unreleased Beyonce music stolen from car in Atlanta
- 07/15 18:32 'World's oldest marathon runner' dies aged 114 in road accident
- 07/15 18:08 'Sesame Street' puppet Elmo's hacked X account calls for Jews' extermination
- 07/15 18:05 Paraguay says will defend ties with Taiwan, host its president
- 07/15 18:03 Excavations begin at child mass grave site in Ireland
- 07/14 20:20 Rescued German backpacker details Australia bush ordeal
- 07/14 20:17 Mob lynches five alleged thieves in quake-hit Guatemalan town
- 07/14 19:02 'Inexcusable' failures led to Trump assassination attempt-- Senate report
- 07/14 18:49 Latest Grok chatbot turns to Musk for some answers
- 07/14 18:45 Kurdish PKK fighters destroy weapons at disarmament ceremony
- 07/14 18:43 US ends case against doctor over alleged Covid vaccine scheme
- 07/11 20:58 'Bad day--' Trump reflects on assassination bid one year later
- 07/11 20:54 Rubio says Asia might get 'better' tariffs than others
- 07/11 15:16 French appeals court clears two over first lady gender rumours
- 07/11 15:12 Trump praises Liberian leader on English - his native tongue
- 07/11 15:09 Man arrested in Italy for syphoning water from royal palace
- 07/11 15:06 Europe court says S.African Semenya's gender eligibility trial wasn't fair
- 07/10 18:31 China says foiled foreign spying plots including 'honeytrap'
- 07/10 18:26 Hamas agrees partial hostage release in 'difficult' truce talks
- 07/10 18:00 Trump says former FBI, CIA directors may have to 'pay a price'
- 07/10 17:43 Ex-Real Madrid coach Ancelotti gets year's jail for tax fraud
- 07/09 19:11 Trump faces MAGA meltdown over Epstein reversal
- 07/09 19:07 Trump holds fresh talks with Netanyahu to end Gaza 'tragedy'
- 07/09 18:28 King Charles, Macron laud new 'entente' on first day of French president's state visit
- 07/09 18:26 Trump says to set 50% copper tariff, no extension to August deadline
- 07/09 18:03 Indian villagers beat five to death for 'witchcraft'
- 07/09 18:01 Trump accuses Putin of talking 'bullshit' on Ukraine
- 07/08 18:18 Even without wins, Musk's party may be threat to Trump-- analysts
- 07/08 18:14 Epstein died by suicide, did not have 'client list'-- govt memo
- 07/08 17:11 Iran president says Israel attempted to assassinate him
- 07/08 17:09 Trump says new tariff deadline 'not 100 percent firm'
- 07/08 16:31 Mexico president slams xenophobia after anti-gentrification protest
- 07/08 16:28 Hiker in Alpine crevasse rescued... by a Chihuahua