AI summary
Summary of article:
Reuters reported that about 600,000 Nvidia H200 chips have been piled up in Hong Kong as Beijing suspended a large number of import licenses. Although Chinese companies have demand, they still face strict controls and tight supplies.
Citing people familiar with the matter, Reuters reported that Beijing had not approved the massive import, about 600,000.Huida (Nvidia) advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips are currently storedhong kong Waiting to be shipped to China. Despite demands from Chinese technology companies, Beijing has suspended the issuance of a large number of import licenses.
Reuters reported that the previously unknown size of the H200 chip inventory reflects Beijing’s reluctance to increase its reliance on American technology. At the same time, Chinese companies need HUDA’s advanced computing capabilities to meet the growing demand for AI in the world’s second largest economy.
Three people familiar with the matter said that China has allowed some chips to enter the country in the last few months. One of them reported that several large Chinese Internet companies have received about 10,000 H200 chips in recent months.
The three people said a small amount of chips were transported through intermediaries and indirect channels, but they did not specify specific quantities. However, these people pointed out that Beijing has not yet approved the import of large quantities of chips.
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Development and Reform Commission did not respond to requests for comment. Huida, as well as Chinese technology companies Alibaba, ByteDance, Deepin and Tencent, also did not respond.
●H200 is not the most advanced but still has practical value
The H200 is not Huida’s latest AI processor, but it has features that Chinese alternatives cannot yet compete with, which makes it quite useful in training AI models, especially when used with Huida software.
The export controls implemented by the United States through 2022 seek to restrict China’s access to Huida’s advanced chips and the equipment needed to manufacture these chips.
With officially authorized supplies limited, Chinese buyers turn to middlemen and indirect channels, driving up unofficial market prices.
A person familiar with the matter said that as of the end of October, the price of a server equipped with eight H200 chips in the Chinese market was more than 6 million yuan (about US$900,000), nearly three times the price a year earlier. The servers using Hyuda’s new Blackwell chips, which are subject to US export controls, cost more than 20 million yuan each, the source said.
●US-China trade and technology tensions
The H200 chips are also embroiled in broader trade and technology tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Last year, the US banned the export of H200 chips to China before President Trump’s administration allowed Huida to sell the chips to approved Chinese customers. This policy change has come in the wake of US-China trade talks.
Beijing has imposed its own restrictions on H200 imports, reflecting officials’ concerns about dependence on American technology.
Technology news outlet The Information reported in July that Chinese authorities had told companies including Alibaba, ByteDance and Deepin that they could be allowed to buy a limited number of H200 chips for training AI models.
