A policy shift by United States President, Donald Trump has reopened the door for Nvidia to export its H200 artificial intelligence chip to China, triggering strong interest across the country’s technology ecosystem. The H200 is Nvidia’s second most powerful AI chip and is far more advanced than any processor previously cleared for sale to China. While Beijing has not yet confirmed approval, evidence shows the chip is already circulating through informal channels.
A review of more than 100 public tenders and academic papers by a common publication indicates that Chinese buyers are already using H200 chips obtained through the grey market. Leading universities and research institutes are among the most eager customers. One professor at Beijing Jiaotong University has stated that his lab owns 8 H200 chips for AI research. Researchers at the Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and at Sun Yat Sen University, Tsinghua University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University reported using 4 H200 processors to train a model that detects whether an image is AI generated. In June, a state-run AI institute in Hefei issued a tender for a server with 8 H200 chips for a quantum AI model project.
Concerns are also rising in Washington over possible military use. Critics argue that China’s armed forces could use advanced AI chips to boost defence capabilities. The review shows that entities linked to the People’s Liberation Army already have access. In August, the PLA Air Force Medical University in Xian sought 8 Nvidia H200 chips for medical AI and biosurveillance research. This week, Beihang University’s School of Cyberspace Security issued a tender to rent computing power at H200 levels. Renting server access has become a common method to use restricted chips without importing them directly.
Large scale data centre operators are also lining up. In Jiangsu province, a county owned firm issued a July tender for 48 servers using 384 Nvidia H200 chips. In Xinjiang, a June 6 plan outlined a 20,000-petaflop hub using more than 8,000 H200 GPUs alongside domestic chips. Another project worth 1.86 billion yuan detailed a mixed facility including 100 servers with H100 or H200 chips. In Hubei, a 307 million yuan filing planned 128 H200 servers for China Unicom by March.
Also read: Viksit Workforce for a Viksit Bharat
Do Follow: The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News LinkedIn Account | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Facebook | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Youtube | The Mainstream formerly known as CIO News Twitter
About us:
The Mainstream is a premier platform delivering the latest updates and informed perspectives across the technology business and cyber landscape. Built on research-driven, thought leadership and original intellectual property, The Mainstream also curates summits & conferences that convene decision makers to explore how technology reshapes industries and leadership. With a growing presence in India and globally across the Middle East, Africa, ASEAN, the USA, the UK and Australia, The Mainstream carries a vision to bring the latest happenings and insights to 8.2 billion people and to place technology at the centre of conversation for leaders navigating the future.
