Small Nvidia H200 shipments to China have started, U.S. commerce official says

2026-07-15

Kessler, the undersecretary for industry and security at the U.S. Commerce Department, said on the 14th that small shipments of Nvidia's H200 AI chip to China have begun. The move could support the expansion of its China business and is drawing attention as a factor in the company's growth.

Some shipments to China start

At a hearing of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, Kessler said 'very small exports have begun'. Nvidia was not immediately available for comment on the remarks.

Semiconductors are a critical component that can determine AI performance, and the U.S. government has banned exports of Nvidia's most advanced products to China. Even so, Nvidia sees China as a major market and has been seeking business opportunities with the H200, which is part of the Hopper product family announced in 2022.

Outlook for China market

According to Nvidia materials, the U.S. government in February allowed small shipments of the H200 to certain Chinese customers. As of May, about 10 companies, including Alibaba Group, Tencent Holdings and ByteDance, were among those covered.

Meanwhile, the company said in its May earnings report that it had not recorded revenue from H200 exports to China even after the U.S. government approved shipments, and had not factored them into its future outlook. The Chinese government is believed to be encouraging domestic companies to use homegrown semiconductors, making the extent of future adoption unclear. The Information, a U.S. tech news site, reported on the 8th that the Chinese government plans to allow several domestic AI companies to buy small quantities of H200 chips.

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