About 600,000 of Nvidia's H200 chips are reportedly sitting in Hong Kong because Beijing has not approved large-scale imports. Washington now reviews H200 export applications case by case, but a condition tied to US shipments could cap volumes at 50%.
Roughly 600,000 of Nvidia's most advanced AI chips are reportedly sitting in Hong Kong, a short trip from mainland China. Chinese tech companies want the hardware, but their government has not let it in.
According to Reuters, citing two people familiar with the matter, the H200 processors are stuck because Beijing has not approved large-scale imports. Reuters also said the scale of the backlog had not been reported before.
Beijing halts customs clearance
Chinese authorities have reportedly halted customs clearance for the H200. The chips can leave one side but cannot enter the other.
Chinese internet companies rely on this kind of semiconductor to build their own AI systems, particularly large language models. As of July, only a very small number of H200 chips had reached China, according to the research findings cited by Crypto Briefing.
Washington loosens its stance, with conditions
The US side has moved the other way. The US Bureau of Industry and Security now reviews H200 export applications on a case-by-case basis, subject to specific criteria.
Exporters must certify that sales to China will not reduce the semiconductor capacity available to US customers. That condition could cap shipments at 50% of equivalent US end-use shipments.
Why Beijing may be holding back
Authorities are increasingly prioritizing domestic AI-chip development to reduce reliance on US suppliers, according to the research findings. Approving the imports would help Chinese companies build AI faster in the near term, but it would also keep them tied to an American vendor that Washington can regulate at will.
For Nvidia, hardware stored in Hong Kong does not generate revenue until it ships, and the reported freeze offers no clear timeline for when that might happen. Even if Beijing relents, the 50% condition means the volume Nvidia can send may depend on how much it ships to American customers.
Source: Crypto Briefing
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