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Chinese Tech Firms Still Pursuing Nvidia Chips Despite Government Pressure

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Chinese tech giants including Alibaba (9988.HK) and ByteDance remain eager to secure Nvidia’s (NVDA.O) artificial intelligence chips despite regulators in Beijing discouraging such purchases, according to four sources familiar with procurement talks.

The companies are pressing for assurance that their orders for Nvidia’s H20 model—which regained U.S. approval for sale in China in July—are being processed. They are also closely tracking Nvidia’s development of a more advanced chip, tentatively called the B30A, based on its Blackwell architecture. Sources said the B30A could cost roughly twice as much as the H20’s current $10,000–$12,000 price tag but may deliver up to six times more power, making it an attractive option if cleared by Washington.

Both the H20 and B30A are downgraded versions of Nvidia’s global products, designed to comply with U.S. export restrictions. The issue of whether Chinese firms can access advanced chips remains a central flashpoint in the U.S.–China technology rivalry. While Washington has relaxed some curbs, U.S. President Donald Trump recently struck a deal requiring Nvidia to give 15% of its H20 revenue to the U.S. government.

China, meanwhile, is urging its companies to reduce reliance on U.S. chips. Regulators have summoned Tencent (0700.HK), ByteDance, and others to question their H20 purchases, citing potential information security risks. However, Beijing has not formally banned Nvidia products.

Strong demand persists due to limited domestic chip supply. Products from Huawei and Cambricon (688256.SS) remain constrained and, according to engineers at Chinese firms, perform less effectively than Nvidia’s. Nvidia itself acknowledged rising competition from local rivals but declined further comment.

Uncertainty over its China sales led Nvidia to issue a cautious forecast in August, excluding potential revenue from the world’s second-largest economy. The company’s shares have since fallen about 6%. CEO Jensen Huang has reassured Chinese customers about H20 availability and is reportedly preparing B30A samples for delivery to China as early as September. Nvidia is estimated to hold 600,000–700,000 H20 units in inventory and has asked TSMC to produce more.

Huang has previously said China could represent a $50 billion market for Nvidia if it maintains access to competitive products.

Huawei Preparing to Ship New AI Chip as China Seeks Alternatives to Nvidia Solutions

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Huawei Technologies is set to begin mass shipments of its new 910C artificial intelligence chip to Chinese customers as early as next month, according to sources familiar with the matter. These shipments come at a crucial time, as China faces increasing challenges in securing domestic alternatives to Nvidia’s AI chips, which have been restricted due to escalating tensions between the U.S. and China. Some shipments of the Huawei 910C have already been made, with many Chinese AI companies eagerly awaiting a local solution to meet their growing demand for high-performance AI hardware.

The timing of the release is significant, as Chinese AI firms have been scrambling to find alternatives to Nvidia’s H20 chip, which had been widely used in AI development. Recently, the U.S. government announced that sales of the H20 to China would now require an export license, placing additional strain on Chinese tech companies that rely heavily on Nvidia’s advanced GPUs for AI research and deployment. With the Huawei 910C, China is looking to reduce its dependency on foreign technology, particularly in the critical area of AI chip development.

The Huawei 910C, which is a graphics processing unit (GPU), represents an evolution of the company’s previous offerings rather than a revolutionary breakthrough. The 910C combines two 910B processors into a single package using advanced integration techniques, delivering performance that rivals Nvidia’s H100 chip. This architectural design allows Huawei to provide a competitive product without entirely reinventing the wheel, making it an appealing alternative for AI applications in China. While the company has yet to publicly confirm the details of the chip’s capabilities or its shipment schedule, the timing aligns with the urgent need for domestic alternatives to Nvidia’s technology.

The geopolitical context behind the 910C’s development is important, as the U.S. has been restricting the sale of its most advanced AI products to China, citing national security concerns. In addition to the H20 chip, China has also been cut off from Nvidia’s flagship B200 chip, further intensifying the need for local solutions. As Huawei ramps up its efforts to ship the 910C, it is positioning itself as a key player in China’s push to maintain technological independence in the face of foreign restrictions.