NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang’s recent diplomatic tour through Washington DC and Beijing looks to be bearing fruit.
During his Beijing visit, he confirmed that NVIDIA has filed applications to sell its H20 GPU in China and that the US government has assured that licences would be granted.
The turnaround is a major development for NVIDIA as it prepares to resume sales of its H20 GPUs to China after months of uncertainty caused by tightening US export controls. It could offer NVIDIA a lifeline in a market that has been battered by escalating technology trade restrictions by the US government.
“General-purpose, open-source research and foundation models are the backbone of AI innovation. We believe that every civil model should run best on the US technology stack, encouraging nations worldwide to choose America,” said Huang.
NVIDIA also announced a new RTX PRO GPU tailored for the Chinese market, designed to comply with U.S. export rules and meet demand for AI in smart factories and logistics.
US-China Chip Sale Restriction TIMELINE
- 2022: The US government began restricting exports of NVIDIA’s most advanced AI chips, such as the A100 and H100, to China, citing national security and concerns over military applications.
- 2023: In response, NVIDIA developed scaled-down versions (A800, H800) specifically for China, but new rules soon rendered these non-compliant.
- 2024: NVIDIA introduced the H20, L20 and L2 chips to meet the latest US export thresholds. However, in April 2025, Washington imposed further restrictions, requiring special licences for H20 exports and causing NVIDIA to stop shipment and take a US$5.5 billion charge related to unsold inventory.
Before the latest restrictions, China accounted for around 13 percent of NVIDIA’s global sales. The export controls led to a sharp decline in revenue from the region and intensified competition from Chinese chipmakers such as Huawei.
As AI becomes as fundamental as energy or water, Huang emphasised NVIDIA’s commitment to supporting open-source research, foundation models, and applications, which democratise AI and will empower emerging economies in every region, including Latin America, Europe, Asia, and beyond.
Entelechy Asia 