Shipments of Nvidia’s H200 artificial-intelligence chips to China and Hong Kong have started, although only a very small number have been delivered so far, a senior U.S. Commerce Department official told Congress on Tuesday.
Jeffrey Kessler, the department’s undersecretary for industry and security, said the government had approved licenses allowing roughly 10 Chinese companies to purchase the processors. He described the volume shipped to date as “trivial,” underscoring that the transactions remain limited and closely scrutinized.
The H200 is among Nvidia’s most powerful AI chips and is used to train and operate advanced artificial-intelligence models. Washington has restricted China’s access to high-end semiconductors since 2022, arguing that the technology could strengthen Beijing’s military and surveillance capabilities.
The decision to permit some H200 exports has drawn criticism from lawmakers concerned that the Trump administration is weakening safeguards. Representative Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, questioned why the Commerce Department had not recently added more Chinese companies to its Entity List, which restricts access to American technology.
Kessler defended the administration’s enforcement strategy, saying export controls must be applied carefully and effectively. The limited shipments mark a notable change from earlier in 2026, when U.S. officials said no H200 chips had yet reached Chinese customers.
The development highlights Washington’s continuing effort to balance national-security concerns with the commercial interests of American chipmakers. Nvidia has faced significant uncertainty in China, once a major market, as both U.S. restrictions and Chinese regulatory decisions have complicated sales of advanced processors.
