China is moving toward a partial reopening of its market to Nvidia’s (NVDA) AI chips, with officials preparing to approve some imports of the company’s H200 chips as early as this quarter, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Under the plan, Chinese officials are preparing to allow local companies to purchase the component from Nvidia for select commercial uses, while its deployment would be restricted across the military, sensitive government agencies, critical infrastructure, and state-owned enterprises because of security concerns, the people said.
The approach reflects Beijing’s broader strategy of balancing access to foreign technology with national security, similar to rules previously applied to products from Apple and Micron Technology. If these organizations still ask to use the component, their applications will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, the people added.
The H200 is an older-generation processor cleared for export by the Trump administration, while sales of Nvidia’s most advanced chips remain restricted on national security grounds. In December, President Donald Trump approved shipments of the H200 to China in exchange for a 25% surcharge, opening a path for Nvidia (NVDA) to recover some lost revenue.
Interest from Chinese buyers is already strong. Alibaba Group and ByteDance have each indicated interest in ordering more than 200,000 units each of the H200, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Introduced in 2023 and shipped beginning in 2024, the H200 belongs to Nvidia’s Hopper generation, trailing the current Blackwell line and two generations behind the upcoming Rubin platform.