Prime Highlight:
- Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said demand from Chinese customers for the company’s H200 artificial intelligence chips is “very high” after the US signalled approval for exports to China.
- Nvidia has restarted H200 chip production and expects shipments to begin once export licence approvals from the US government are finalised.
Key Facts:
- The H200 AI chip is one or two generations older than Nvidia’s latest processors and has not been modified to comply with export restrictions.
- Huang previously estimated China could represent a $50 billion annual opportunity for Nvidia, though potential H200 sales are not yet included in current revenue forecasts.
Background:
Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang said on Tuesday that Chinese customers are showing “very high” demand for the company’s H200 artificial intelligence chips, after the United States indicated that it would allow the product to be exported to China.
Speaking at a press conference during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Huang said Nvidia has restarted production of the H200 chips and is finalising export licence details with the US government. The chips play a vital role in building and running advanced AI models.
“We have fired up our supply chain, and H200s are now moving through the production line,” Huang said, adding that shipments will begin once all approvals are in place.
Investors view China as a major growth market for Nvidia as Chinese technology firms continue to develop their own AI systems. Huang earlier estimated that the opportunity could be worth about $50 billion a year. He also said that potential sales from China are not yet included in Nvidia’s current revenue forecasts.
In December, US President Donald Trump said Nvidia could export the H200 chips to China if the company paid 25% of those sales to the US government. The H200 is one or two generations older than Nvidia’s latest chips, but it has not been deliberately slowed down to meet export limits, unlike some earlier models.
China also needs to clear the imports. Huang said he does not expect any public announcement from Chinese authorities and that Nvidia will understand the regulatory status when purchase orders begin to arrive.
“There won’t be any big press releases. It will simply show up in orders,” he said.
Huang added that any H200 sales to China would come on top of the company’s earlier forecast of $500 billion in revenue over two years, signalling that Nvidia may see another strong phase of growth.