ZTE Subsidiary Approved to Purchase Nvidia H200 Chips
Alina Collins
ZTE subsidiary Zhongxing Kangxun, server maker Maginfra, and a Kingsoft Cloud unit have received US export licenses for Nvidia H200 or equivalent AMD chips — expanding the approved-buyer list beyond internet giants to telecom-equipment firms and smaller cloud players, though China's import review remains the final gate to actual delivery.
Who got the licenses, and for what?
ZTE's Zhongxing Kangxun Telecom and server maker Maginfra are cleared to buy Nvidia's H200 chips.
Kingsoft Cloud subsidiary Zhuhai Hengqin Yunxiang Zhisheng is cleared for certain AMD equivalents.
This means → the approved-buyer list now stretches from Alibaba, Tencent, and ByteDance to telecom-equipment makers and mid-size cloud firms — the licensing aperture is widening.
Why is the H200 the flashpoint?
The H200 is one of Nvidia's most powerful chips, widely used to train and run large AI models.
It has become the central token in the US-China tech contest: Washington uses it as a control lever while relying on sales to maintain technological dominance.
In plain terms = whoever can buy the H200 can run frontier AI models — so every license is a geopolitical signal.
Why is Washington willing to approve sales?
The Trump administration's logic: allowing exports = cementing US tech leadership, while letting Nvidia keep earning from one of the world's largest tech markets.
Nvidia itself has been actively pushing to preserve access to the Chinese market.
This reflects a constant balancing act between "block" and "sell" — a total cutoff does not serve US industry interests.
License in hand — does that mean chips in hand?
Reuters reported in May that roughly 10 Chinese firms received H200 licenses — including Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance, and JD — but no actual deliveries had occurred at the time.
Recently, some Chinese cloud firms told partners they "may soon be able to obtain H200 chips," suggesting China's import review is making progress.
In plain terms = the US license is only the first gate; China's import approval is the second — chips arrive only after both gates open.
Could China's domestic push disrupt the deal?
China is simultaneously advancing homegrown AI-chip alternatives, adding a layer of uncertainty to whether approved H200 sales will actually land.
This means → even if licenses and import reviews both clear, Chinese firms may re-weigh procurement between domestic solutions and the H200.
The outcome hinges on two variables: how fast China's import review moves, and how quickly domestic chips close the gap.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.