As previously reported by Logos Press, the U.S. administration issued licenses to about 10 Chinese corporations to purchase H200, the second most powerful AI chip from Nvidia. Under the terms of the U.S. license, each approved customer was entitled to purchase up to 75,000 chips.
However, the deliveries have not started, according to Reuters. To save the situation, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was forced to urgently join the U.S. delegation accompanying Trump to the summit in Beijing.
Geopolitics vs. trade
This story illustrates how the technological rivalry between the US and China paralyzes even officially authorized trade, forcing the world’s most expensive company to balance the political ambitions of the two superpowers, investing.com writes in this regard
Before the strict US export restrictions, Nvidia controlled about 95% of the Chinese market for advanced microchips, and the PRC accounted for 13% of its global revenue. Jensen Huang previously estimated the potential of the Chinese AI market alone in 2026 at $50 billion.
However, in a recent interview, he admitted that the company’s share in the Chinese AI gas pedal market has “actually fallen to zero” due to sanctions.
Realizing the criticality of the situation, the head of Nvidia literally asked for talks. According to Reuters’ sources, Huang was not initially on the White House delegation’s lists. Donald Trump invited him at the last minute, picking him up on the presidential plane during refueling in Alaska on his way to the summit with President Xi Jinping.
As the publication notes, the contracts for the supply of chips broke down at the initiative of the Chinese side.
“Chinese companies have curtailed purchases after receiving direct instructions from authorities in Beijing,” the source told Reuters.
Trump has outdone himself
But the main reason lies in the unprecedented conditions the US has set for the deals.
Thus, Chinese buyers must prove the existence of “sufficient security procedures” and give guarantees that the chips will not be used for military purposes. In addition, Trump personally negotiated a condition that the U.S. Treasury should receive 25% of all proceeds from the sale of these chips.
Since U.S. law does not allow for the direct imposition of export duties, a clever scheme was devised: the chips, which are manufactured in Taiwan, must first be physically imported into the U.S. so that the duty can be imposed on them, and only then sent to China.
This logistical loop has caused real paranoia in Beijing. Chinese authorities fear that hardware “bookmarks” or hidden espionage vulnerabilities could be sewn into servers and chips during transit through U.S. territory.
It is still unclear how this story will ultimately end, but it clearly shows how geopolitics is increasingly becoming a determining factor in trade.
