The United States has approved exports of Nvidia’s H200 AI chips to select customers in China.
The Commerce Department’s decision, first reported by Semafor, is a major turn in a year filled with changing trade rules.
CNBC noted that the U.S. government will receive a 25% share of revenue from these approved shipments.
This change occurred just one week after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the final decision rested with President Donald Trump.
Now, with approval granted, the administration faces new pressure from lawmakers who argue that advanced AI chips should remain off-limits to China.
The Shipment
The H200 is one of Nvidia’s most advanced processors. It outperforms the H20 chip, which Nvidia designed specifically to comply with earlier U.S. export limits for the Chinese market.
Yet the new approval comes with a strict condition. Nvidia may only ship H200 units that are roughly 18 months old.
Even so, these older chips remain powerful enough to draw interest from companies building large AI systems.
Nvidia publicly supported the administration’s decision, saying that it helps U.S. manufacturers remain competitive while still applying government oversight.
Congressional Opposition
Soon after the announcement, lawmakers from both parties appeared concerned.
Members of Congress have long warned that exporting cutting-edge chips could aid China’s military development or strengthen its surveillance infrastructure.
Two senators, Pete Ricketts, a Republican from Nebraska, and Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, introduced the SAFE Chips Act on December 4.
The bill would require the Commerce Department to deny any export license for advanced AI chips to China for 30 months.
Legislators have not scheduled a vote, and the new approval may complicate the bill’s momentum.
This tension is not new: Congress has supported tight export limits for years.
Meanwhile, President Trump has changed positions several times, creating uncertainty about the long-term policy direction.
Policy Changes
In April 2025, the Trump administration required chipmakers, including Nvidia, to secure special licenses before sending high-end chips to China.
Officials rescinded a Biden-era diffusion rule that would have placed even stricter controls on AI chip exports. This occurred in May.
Then, summertime brought changes that allowed companies to resume shipments. However, the government must receive a 15% share of the revenue.
This flurry of events and the weight they hold made chips quickly become a bargaining tool in U.S.-China trade discussions.
However, conditions changed in China when the Cyberspace Administration barred domestic firms from purchasing Nvidia chips.
Therefore, the market for U.S.-developed chips weakened as Chinese companies turned to local hardware from Alibaba and Huawei.
Because of these changes, U.S. companies reentered a market that had already begun to rely on domestic alternatives.
This week, President Trump said on Truth Social that Chinese President Xi Jinping “responded positively” to the H200 decision.
Why Exports Now
Commerce officials said the government will review and vet each commercial buyer in China before approving any shipment.
They argue that the decision strikes a careful balance. It allows U.S. companies to remain competitive while preserving oversight of sensitive technology.
Supporters also warn that overly strict bans could push China to accelerate development of domestic chips even faster, potentially reducing U.S. leverage in the long term.
Still, critics insist that even older H200 models carry national-security risks. They believe China may still use them to support advanced AI development.
