Nvidia’s A100 chips are less powerful than H200 AI GPUs, which U.S. President Donald Trump has finally allowed for export to China in late 2025. However, potential buyers still need to acquire export licenses from the federal government before they can get their hands on these chips, and it’s unlikely that PLA-linked institutions will ever get approval.
You may like US Senators call for a halt to Nvidia GPU exports in the wake of the Super Micro scandal US senators want to suspend Nvidia AI chip export licenses to China and its intermediaries The Super Micro AI accelerator smuggling scandal proves how cut-throat the global AI race has become — as global trade evolves, so does export control evasion It’s unclear how the universities were able to purchase these Super Micro servers. However, three individuals, including Super Micro co-founder Yi-Shyan “Wally” Liaw, were recently arrested for smuggling $2.5 billion worth of advanced AI servers into China . The conspirators allegedly shipped orders from resellers and shell companies located in different countries in Southeast Asia. Once the servers containing the controlled AI GPUs arrived at the local warehouse, their serial numbers were transferred to dummy servers, and they were then issued new fake documentation. Once completed, they were forwarded to their final destination in China.
News like this has several American lawmakers on edge, with U.S. Senators Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) writing a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urging him to suspend the issuance of export licenses to China and its intermediaries until the issue has been resolved. It would be a blow to Nvidia if the administration grants the request, especially as the company has finally received Chinese orders for its H200 chips after several months of uncertainty from Beijing.
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Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/chinese-universities-performing-military-research-acquired-super-micro-servers-with-sanctioned-nvidia-ai-chips-public-documents-reveal-purchases-were-completed-in-2025-and-2026-despite-us-export-controls#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
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