China greenlights $10 billion in NVIDIA AI chip sales
China has finally given the green light for NVIDIA to sell its powerful H200 AI chips to big names like Alibaba and ByteDance, worth roughly $10 billion in initial approvals.
This is the first time these sales have been allowed, following recent US approvals and some high-level talks between both countries.
Conditions attached to the sales
Beijing isn't just handing over tech freely.
Beijing has imposed conditions on sales, including requirements that many AI workloads use domestically produced chips (particularly for inference), and has encouraged buyers to pair NVIDIA purchases with Chinese-made alternatives.
It's part of China's push to boost its own chip industry and rely less on foreign tech, while also keeping pace in the ongoing U.S.-China AI rivalry.
Implications of the deal
This move gives NVIDIA a huge win in a market where it was losing ground due to earlier restrictions.
For China, it's another step toward closing the tech gap with the US and leveling up its homegrown AI game.