Jensen Huang Says China Will Open Its Market to Nvidia's AI Chips, But Not a Single One Has Shipped

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told Bloomberg Television on Monday, May 18, that China will eventually open its market to U.S. AI chips. Speaking at a Dell Technologies event in Las Vegas, days after joining President Trump's delegation to Beijing, Huang put the decision squarely on Beijing. "The Chinese government has to decide how much of their local market do they want to protect," he said. "My sense is that over time the market will open."

That confidence has a ceiling. Trump's summit with Xi Jinping produced no immediate breakthrough for Nvidia. The H200 chip is now legally cleared for sale in China by Washington, yet not a single unit has shipped.

Huang Was in Beijing With Trump but Did Not Raise His Own Chips With China's Leaders

Huang joined Trump's May 14 and 15 summit in Beijing alongside Apple's Tim Cook and Tesla's Elon Musk. He was not originally on the White House guest list. According to Reuters, Trump picked him up in Alaska en route to Beijing, which immediately raised investor expectations that a deal on H200 chip sales was close.

However, it was not. When Bloomberg asked whether Huang raised the H200 directly with President Xi or Premier Li Qiang, he confirmed he did not. "I didn't discuss directly with them about H200," Huang said, adding that "President Trump had some conversations with the leaders." He said he is looking forward to seeing what Beijing decides.