Overview

• The Commerce Department has begun issuing export licenses for Nvidia’s H20 AI chips, reversing an April ban to allow shipments to China.
• Analysts estimate that lifting the restrictions could save Nvidia up to $8 billion in lost sales this quarter.
• The approvals followed Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s Aug. 6 White House meeting with President Trump, which sources say accelerated the licensing process.
• Chinese regulators and state-linked media have accused the H20 chips of containing hardware backdoors for remote access and labeled them unsafe and outdated.
• Nvidia has denied any backdoor features, but its more advanced AI processors remain barred from export to China under existing U.S. controls.