Nvidia Tightens H200 Chip Sales To China, Shift Risk to Buyers

Core Insights - Nvidia is tightening its terms for selling H200 AI chips to China, requiring full upfront payment and strict terms, shifting regulatory risk to customers [2][3] - Chinese officials are preparing to approve some H200 imports for select commercial uses while restricting access for military and sensitive sectors [4] - Demand for H200 chips is strong among Chinese cloud and internet companies, but Nvidia faces supply chain constraints and lacks visibility on approval timing from Beijing [6] Group 1: Regulatory Changes - Nvidia's new policy requires Chinese customers to pay in full upfront for H200 orders, moving away from previous practices that allowed partial deposits [2] - Chinese regulators are considering how many domestically produced chips must be purchased alongside imported Nvidia chips, leading to temporary pauses in orders from some tech companies [5] Group 2: Market Demand and Supply Chain - There is intense demand for H200 chips from Chinese cloud and internet players, as they view it as a significant upgrade from the blocked H20 model [6] - Nvidia is managing capacity constraints while transitioning to the next Rubin platform and competing for production capacity at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co [7]