China to Allow Nvidia H200 Only ‘When Necessary,’ Effectively Locking Down AI Chip Imports

[Financial News] The Chinese government has reportedly decided to grant only limited approval for purchases of Nvidia’s artificial intelligence (AI) chip, the NVIDIA H200 GPU. Purchases will be allowed only in a few exceptional cases, such as for university research and development (R&D) labs, a move that observers say effectively amounts to import controls.
The U.S. information technology (IT) outlet The Information reported on the 13th (local time), citing multiple sources, that China has notified some technology companies of new guidelines that restrict approval for NVIDIA H200 GPU purchases to special circumstances. According to the report, Chinese authorities instructed that the chip should be bought only “when it is absolutely necessary.”
China had initially considered a plan that would require companies purchasing the NVIDIA H200 GPU to also buy a certain proportion of domestically produced AI chips. In the end, however, it appears to have opted for a more hard‐line form of control. The move is seen as prioritizing protection of its own semiconductor industry, including Huawei and Cambricon Technologies, over AI development that relies on cutting‐edge foreign chips.
That said, Chinese authorities did not clearly specify in the guidelines what exactly constitutes the “necessary cases” or the scope of permitted purchases. The Information analyzed this ambiguity as leaving room for Beijing to soften its stance if U.S.-China relations improve. The government plans to convey the guidelines to more companies through additional meetings, but it remains uncertain whether any new, clearer criteria will be presented.
Earlier, Nvidia chief executive officer Jensen Huang said at a press and analyst briefing held on the 6th at Consumer Electronics Show 2026 (CES 2026) in Las Vegas, United States, that the U.S. government’s approval process for exports of the NVIDIA H200 GPU to China was in its final stage and that demand from Chinese customers was very strong. Regarding the likelihood of approval from Beijing, Huang said, “I do not expect any announcement from the Chinese government,” adding, “When purchase orders arrive, that in itself will say everything.”
The NVIDIA H200 GPU chip is one generation older than Nvidia’s current Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) architecture, NVIDIA Blackwell, but is still widely regarded as far superior in performance and efficiency to products made by domestic Chinese semiconductor firms. Against this backdrop, China’s latest policy is seen as reflecting a determination to reduce its dependence on foreign suppliers for advanced AI computation capabilities.


km@fnnews.com Kim Kyung-min Reporter