Alibaba, ByteDance, and Tencent still want Nvidia’s H20 AI chips despite Beijing pressure

Nvidia chips remain in high demand in China despite U.S. export restrictions and pressure from the Chinese government for tech firms to rely less on American-made technology. 

The Jensen Huan-led chipmaker is in the process of developing a new chip called B30A that is expected to perform twice as much as its popular H20 chip.

Nvidia’s chips are still in demand in the Chinese tech market

Chinese technology giants, including Alibaba, ByteDance, and Tencent, are reportedly still eager to buy Nvidia’s artificial intelligence chips, despite the pressure from the Beijing government to limit reliance on U.S. suppliers.

Four sources told Reuters that these companies continued to seek reassurance that their orders for Nvidia’s H20 chip are being processed.

The H20 is a downgraded version of Nvidia’s advanced chips, designed specifically to comply with U.S. export restrictions. In July of this year, the U.S. government scaled back its restrictions and allowed Nvidia permission to resume selling the H20 in China.

U.S. President Donald Trump also struck a deal requiring Nvidia to give the U.S. government 15% of its H20 revenue.

The restriction was initially imposed by the U.S. government to limit China’s access to the most advanced semiconductors. However, critics of strict bans have said that Chinese firms are more likely to keep using Nvidia’s software products if they can continue buying these downgraded chips, rather than fully shifting to rivals like Huawei.

The high demand for Nvidia’s chips despite government interference on both sides is due to the development of its newer and more powerful chip, tentatively called the B30A.

It’s been reported by two sources that the B30A could be up to six times more powerful than the H20. If approved for sale in China, it is expected to cost about twice as much, with a projected price tag of $10,000 to $12,000. Chinese buyers view the potential price as reasonable given the expected performance.

Chinese regulators have summoned companies such as ByteDance and Tencent to question their Nvidia purchases. Officials have also voiced their concerns about potential information risks, but have not issued a formal order to stop buying Nvidia chips.

Domestic shortages in the industry benefit Nvidia

Chinese demand for Nvidia products remains strong because domestic alternatives are in short supply. Huawei and Cambricon, two of China’s leading chipmakers, cannot meet the full demand for high-performance AI processors.

Reports claim that sources working in engineering operations at Chinese tech firms believe that Nvidia’s chips still perform better than the domestic options.

Nvidia acknowledged in a statement that “competition has undeniably arrived,” but declined to go into further detail.

In late August, Nvidia issued a cautious quarterly forecast that excluded potential sales from China, contributing to a 6% decline in Nvidia’s stock. Executives explained that while Nvidia had secured some licenses to export the H20, shipments had not yet started because of issues tied to the revenue-sharing deal with Washington.

Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang personally reassured Chinese customers that the H20 chip’s availability is not at risk. Two sources said Huang also told suppliers that demand for the chip remains strong.

Nvidia reportedly has an inventory of 600,000 to 700,000 H20 chips and has asked TSMC to produce more. The company also aims to deliver B30A samples to Chinese clients for testing as early as September.

Nvidia estimates that the Chinese market could be worth as much as $50B if it can provide competitive products. China accounted for about 13% of Nvidia’s revenue in the past financial year, making it a vital market despite U.S. export restrictions and political pressure.

Get seen where it counts. Advertise in Cryptopolitan Research and reach crypto’s sharpest investors and builders.