US rules and Huang exit threaten $3bn in Chinese AI projects using Nvidia chips
A Reuters review found more than $3bn in Chinese computing projects built around restricted Nvidia processors, highlighting continued demand despite US export controls. The findings emerge after Nvidia co-founder Jensen Huang resigned amid a scandal involving a Chinese businesswoman.
Nvidia has said US export controls have effectively shut it out of China's AI data-centre market, but a Reuters review has identified more than $3 billion in Chinese computing projects built around the American chipmaker's restricted processors.
The projects, stretching from China's wealthy coastal technology hubs to remote western provinces, reveal the scale of continuing demand for Nvidia hardware even as Washington seeks to curb Beijing's access to the technology powering the global artificial-intelligence boom.
Reuters examined more than 150 Chinese procurement notices, investment plans, construction contracts and corporate disclosures, identifying projects and equipment agreements with a combined reported value exceeding 23 billion yuan ($3.2 billion). The estimate includes planned investments and signed contracts as well as completed installations. It covers buildings, power systems and other infrastructure, and does not reflect spending on Nvidia chips alone.
The findings come a day after Nvidia co-founder Jensen Huang resigned as chief executive amid a scandal over his relationship with a Chinese businesswoman suspected by US authorities of intelligence ties to Beijing. Huang, a vocal advocate of easing export restrictions, said last year Nvidia's market share in China had fallen from 95 per cent to zero.
Sunny Cheung, an analyst at the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation, said Reuters' findings reinforce his own view on enforcement: "Washington must stop focusing solely on who buys the chips on the surface and start examining who ultimately uses the computing power—and for what purpose."
Across China, developers and institutions are advancing billions of dollars in AI data-centre projects designed around restricted Nvidia H100, H200 and H800 processors. These range from massive regional computing hubs to retrofitted commercial sites. While some facilities are already operational or under construction, operators are exposed to potential delays, supply disruptions or costly redesigns around domestic chips as export controls tighten.
Washington began restricting Nvidia's advanced AI processors in 2022 and subsequently tightened controls on modified chips developed for China. Nvidia's August filing said it was effectively excluded from China's data-centre computing market. But an IDC report cited by Reuters in October estimated Nvidia still accounted for 34 per cent of Chinese AI-accelerator shipments in the first half of 2026.