US President Donald Trump looks on before signing a bill in the Oval Office of the White House on January 14, 2026 in Washington.
Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Images
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that his administration would approve the sale to China NvidiaH200 chip for artificial intelligencebut the US government gets 25% of the sales one day after official regulations was published with the US government.
Unlike Nvidia’s previous China-focused chip, H20The H200 is the company’s version of the Hopper generation sold in the US and other markets. The H200 was not specifically designed and slowed down for export.
In a speech on Wednesday, Trump noted that the H200’s performance surpassed two generations of Nvidia chips currently in production, citing Nvidia’s Blackwell and Rubin AI chips.
“It’s not the highest level, but it’s a very good level, China wants them and other people want them, and we basically make 25% on the sale of these chips,” Trump said.
Previously, Nvidia said that the Chinese market might be worth it $50 billion per year.
“We’re allowing them to do that, but the U.S. will get 25% of the chips in terms of dollar value,” Trump said.
In the application published on TuesdayThe Commerce Department said the rule change included some requirements, including that the exporter confirm a sufficient supply of H200 chips in the U.S. and that the chips do not receive the global foundry capacity required for advanced AI chips headed to the U.S.
The government said that those ordering the chips must have adequate security procedures in place and must undergo independent, third-party testing in the US to confirm their specifications before the chips are shipped.
Chip shipments to China are limited to 50% of total shipments to US customers. It is also mentioned in the application AMDMI325X chip.
“We welcome President Trump’s decision to allow America’s chip industry to compete to support America’s high-wage jobs and manufacturing,” an Nvidia spokesperson said. “Offering H200 to approved commercial customers verified by the Department of Commerce strikes a very well-thought-out balance for America.”
“Critics of the administration are unwittingly advancing the interests of foreign competitors on US entity lists – America should always want its industry to compete for vetted and approved for-profit businesses that support real jobs for real Americans,” the spokesperson continued.
Nvidia CEO last week Jensen Huang told reporters that the company is seeing “very high” interest in its H200 chip China customers and that the company has started producing the chip again.
″We have started the supply chain and H200 is flowing through the lines,” Huang said said at the press conference CES conference in Las Vegas.
It’s unclear whether Chinese regulators will approve imports of Nvidia chips as the country aims to promote home-grown but inferior AI chips to become self-sufficient.
Huang said last week that he did not expect an announcement from China.
“We don’t expect any press releases or any big announcements,” Huang said. “It’s just going to be purchase orders.”
Last year, Huang raised his two-year forecast for AI chip sales to reach $500 billion by the end of 2026. Any H200 sales to China would be in addition to that forecast, he said last week.
On Wednesday, the White House said it had imposed a 25% tax. rate The number of imports on some chips, such as the H200, must be imported to the US for testing before being shipped to China.
