Nvidia chips don't belong on the bargaining table

NEWS THAT NVIDIA will not be able to sell its customized artificial intelligence chips in China caught both the company and markets by surprise.

- Bloomberg

The disclosure came just a day after Nvidia announced a half-trillion-dollar US investment commitment that was celebrated by President Donald Trump, and followed a media report saying that Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang had struck a deal safeguarding the H20 chips in China over dinner at Mar-A-Lago.

The confusion represented what is now a usual day in Washington as Trump plays out his chaotic trade games and increases pressure on China to negotiate. Beijing, meanwhile, has signaled that one of its chief concerns heading into potential talks are US policies designed to suppress its modernization.

The scene is now set for Nvidia's H20 chips, made specifically to comply with export controls, to be turned into the ultimate tariff-related bargaining point. An exemption would please the company, which has long argued that export controls are ineffective and give a boost to domestic players including Huawei Technologies. And while Beijing is not backing down, access to AI chips is one thing it desperately wants.