China to Approve Nvidia H200 Chip Imports for Commercial Use

• China plans to approve imports of Nvidia H200 chips for select commercial use as early as this quarter, marking a significant win for Nvidia.
• The H200 chips will be barred from military, sensitive government agencies, critical infrastructure, and state-owned enterprises due to security concerns.
• This move could help Nvidia regain market share in China, the world's largest semiconductor market, after US restrictions led to a 95% market share drop.
• Major Chinese firms like Alibaba and ByteDance have expressed interest in ordering over 200,000 H200 units each to upgrade their AI models.
• The H200 is an older-generation chip, allowed for export by the Trump administration with a 25% surcharge, while US restricts more advanced processors.

Why It Matters: China's conditional approval of Nvidia H200 imports offers a crucial market reentry for the chipmaker amidst US tech rivalry.