The Trump administration on Monday announced a major revision to U.S. export controls on advanced AI chips, approving Nvidia’s sale of its H200 processors to certain customers in China in exchange for the U.S. government receiving 25% of the revenue from those sales.
President Trump detailed the agreement in a post Monday, describing it as a way to maintain national security while strengthening the U.S. semiconductor industry.
“I have informed President Xi, of China, that the United States will allow NVIDIA to ship its H200 products to approved customers in China, and other Countries, under conditions that allow for continued strong National Security,” Trump said. “$25% will be paid to the United States of America. This policy will support American Jobs, strengthen U.S. Manufacturing, and benefit American Taxpayers.”
What the Deal Allows — and What It Doesn’t
The H200 is one generation behind Nvidia’s most advanced Blackwell chips. Those Blackwell models, as well as Nvidia’s upcoming Rubin chips, remain fully restricted under U.S. export rules. The new policy gives China access to a significantly more powerful chip than the H20 model that the Trump administration previously allowed, which carried a 15% revenue requirement.
Trump indicated that Xi responded positively to the revised terms, though it is not yet clear whether Beijing will allow imports of the H200.
A Major Win for Nvidia After Months of Lobbying
The announcement is a significant victory for Nvidia, which has repeatedly pushed for the ability to sell more capable chips to China. CEO Jensen Huang met with Trump last week to discuss export restrictions, after which Trump praised Huang and emphasized that the administration’s national security priorities would remain firm.
Nvidia publicly welcomed the policy shift.
“We applaud President Trump’s decision to allow America’s chip industry to compete to support high paying jobs and manufacturing in America,” the company said. “Offering H200 to approved commercial customers, vetted by the Department of Commerce, strikes a thoughtful balance that is great for America.”
Following the announcement, Nvidia’s stock rose about 3% in after-hours trading.
Trump said similar export conditions will eventually apply to AMD, Intel, and other chip manufacturers, and he directed the Commerce Department to finalize implementation rules for Nvidia’s H200 exports.
Supporters Applaud the Economic Upside, Critics Warn of Security Risks
Supporters of the softened restrictions argue that maintaining access to the massive Chinese market is necessary for U.S. chipmakers to sustain research momentum and remain global leaders in AI hardware. Nvidia, in particular, sits at the core of the U.S. AI ecosystem, with its chips powering virtually all major AI models.
But lawmakers in both parties, alongside national security analysts, warn that allowing China to acquire more capable American AI chips risks accelerating Beijing’s military and technological capabilities. They note longstanding concerns about intellectual property theft and China’s ambitions in advanced computing.
A recent report from the Institute for Progress concluded that China has no domestic chip that matches the H200’s capabilities. Allowing H200 exports, it argued, would narrow the U.S. advantage in high-end AI compute while doing little to slow China’s drive toward its own semiconductor independence.
Second Nvidia Victory in Days
The policy shift marks Nvidia’s second recent win on export control policy. Days earlier, a congressional proposal requiring Nvidia to prioritize American customers failed to be included in the annual defense policy bill — a defeat for China hawks and AI-safety advocates who had pushed for tighter controls.
With both setbacks to export-control hardliners, Nvidia now enters the next phase of U.S. policy rule-making with considerably more freedom to shape its global market strategy, even as geopolitical tensions keep pressure on the sector.
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