President Trump has verified that the US struck a deal with GPU manufacturers to export their chips into China, also claiming that NVIDIA is selling an obsolete chip to the region.
President Trump Initially Wanted a 20% Share of China Revenue, But NVIDIA's CEO Negotiated it Down to 15%
There were reports that the Trump administration made a deal with NVIDIA and AMD, under which the firms would share 15% of revenue coming from China with the government. This was one of a kind deal secured by any administration out there, and it showed that President Trump is actually nitpicking corporations and their revenue from China, in order to let them continue their business with the region. Now, while talking to the press. The US President confirmed the claims, saying the administration was looking for a 20% share, but Jensen negotiated it to 15%.
I wanted 20%, but Jensen negotiated me down to 15%. We are only doing this for the H20 chips. We may do this for Blackwell, but it would be a lesser version of the most powerful Blackwell chip.
Apart from this, he also discussed the prospects of releasing newer AI GPUs for China, claiming that they could feature downgraded capabilities that don't give Chinese AI customers an advantage. This means that the US administration won't allow the flow of highly capable AI chips to the region, and NVIDIA would have to rely on subpar options. Now, based on this, the rumors claiming that Team Green is preparing for a GDDR7-based AI chip for China are sounding to be viable for now, but we will have to wait and see.
President Trump also stated that NVIDIA's H20 chips are 'obsolete' and are nowhere near what the US currently offers its customers. In this matter, he isn't wrong at all, considering that the H20 chip has been in Chinese domestic markets for several years, and when you factor in their performance relative to solutions like the Blackwell, it is evident that the H20 is far behind. NVIDIA currently sees demand for the H20 chips in China, but this could change moving into next year, as the need for computing power increases.
It would be interesting to see how the situation for NVIDIA-China evolves moving forward, but the prospect of introducing a more capable solution for the region is out of the equation.
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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