Nvidia and AMD to Restart AI Chips Sales to China After US Approval

Nvidia and AMD are getting ready to restart sales of some of their AI chips to China. This big move comes after the US government gave them the green light.

The companies had stopped sending certain chips to China because of strict trade rules. These rules were meant to stop China from using advanced American AI for its military. But now, the US has changed its mind about some chips.

Nvidia said it got approval to sell its H20 AI chip in China. This chip was made to meet earlier US trade rules. But in April, the Trump administration made the rules tougher and blocked the H20 too. Now, those controls have been eased again.

Nvidia and AMD to Restart AI Chips Sales to China After US Approval

This is big news for Nvidia. The company could now earn billions more this year by selling the H20 chip. Many orders that Nvidia had lost hope for may now come back.

AMD, another US chip giant, has also received a similar green light. The company plans to start sending its MI308 AI chips to China once final export licenses come through. After this news, AMD’s stock jumped over 5% and Nvidia’s rose by about 4.5%.

Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, met with former President Trump last week and is now in Beijing for a conference. He told Chinese state TV that the company can now ship the H20 again. The US Commerce Department, which handles chip export rules, has not yet said when the final licenses will be ready.

This new move comes as the US and China try to ease trade tensions. In the past weeks, both countries agreed to allow more trade in technology and minerals. China agreed to export rare-earth minerals again. These are important for making many high-tech products. In return, the US lifted some export bans, including for chip design software.

The deal shows how important China is for American chip companies. Nvidia recently became the first company to reach $4 trillion in value. But it lost many Chinese customers when the chip bans started. Nvidia’s market share in China fell from 95% to around 50%. This gave the Chinese company Huawei a chance to grow stronger.

Many Chinese tech companies, like Alibaba, rely on Nvidia chips for AI. They use them to build new services and compete with big names like OpenAI. After the news, Chinese tech stocks went up. Alibaba’s shares rose 6% in Hong Kong. Other tech companies and data center operators also saw their stocks climb.

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Experts say this is good for both the chip industry and US-China ties. It may help cool down tensions that have been high since the first chip bans in 2022.

Still, some US officials worry about selling high-end chips to China. They fear these could help China’s military. But Nvidia’s CEO says China can’t fully depend on American chips because the US can always block sales again.

For now, Nvidia and AMD see this as a win. They get back a huge market. China gets access to important AI hardware. And both countries show they are willing to talk and make deals.