These three firms had not previously been reported as licensees. They expand the known set beyond China's largest internet groups and major electronics distributors . ZTE's inclusion is notable because the company and its unit ZTE Kangxun were historically on the U.S. Entity List — a restrictive trade blacklist — from which they were removed in 2017 .

The Broader Set of U.S.-Approved Chinese Firms

In May 2026, Reuters reported that the U.S. had cleared roughly 10 Chinese firms to buy Nvidia H200 chips, including :

• Alibaba
• Tencent
• ByteDance
• JD.com

Prior to that, other firms such as Baidu had also been reported as receiving licenses. The total pool of U.S.-approved Chinese buyers now exceeds a dozen entities . A few distributors, such as Foxconn and Lenovo, also received approval .

Shipment Status: Minimal to None, Then Signs of Movement

Despite the approvals, as of mid-May 2026, not a single H200 chip had actually been delivered to any Chinese buyer, according to Brookings . The logjam was due to:

• Beijing's reluctance to approve imports (explained below)
• Ongoing U.S. security review processes that stalled some approvals

In late May 2026, a "trivial" number of H200s were confirmed shipped to China by Under Secretary for Commerce Jeffrey Kessler . By July 2026, some Chinese cloud firms told partners and clients they may soon be able to obtain H200 chips, suggesting progress in Chinese import reviews .

China's Selective Purchasing Approvals (The "Other Side of the Coin")

China itself has imposed a parallel approval system. Key milestones:

• January 2026 – Beijing tells Alibaba and other top tech firms to prepare orders for H200 chips, signaling imminent formal approval .
• January 17, 2026 – Days after the U.S. approval, Chinese customs officials instructed agents that H200 shipments were not permitted entry, effectively imposing a de facto import ban .
• January 28, 2026 – China grants its first formal permission for H200 purchases, coinciding with a visit by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang .
• Mid-May 2026 – Brookings reported that despite Washington approving sales to 10 Chinese companies, Beijing's objections meant zero chips had been delivered .
• July 8, 2026 – China plans to allow top AI firms (Alibaba, ByteDance, DeepSeek) to buy a limited number of H200 chips, lifting its own domestic blockade . The approved quantity is believed to be under 200,000 units total, less than half of what the three companies had requested .

This creates an unusual dynamic: Washington has approved more entities than Beijing has allowed to actually purchase.

The Evolving U.S. Licensing Landscape

August 2025 – The U.S. Commerce Department begins granting licenses to Nvidia for its H20 chips, a China-compliant reduced-capability variant .

August 2025 – The Trump administration reaches an unprecedented agreement: Nvidia and AMD will remit 15% of their China AI chip revenue to the U.S. government in exchange for export licenses .

October 2025 – The U.S. Senate passes bipartisan legislation requiring Nvidia and AMD to ensure U.S. companies get priority access to their products before China .

January 13, 2026 – The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issues a landmark final rule shifting license review for Nvidia H200 and AMD MI325X (and similar chips) from a presumption of denial to case-by-case review, subject to strict conditions :

• Third-party testing to verify AI functionality before shipment
• China cannot receive more than 50% of the volume sold to U.S. clients
• Nvidia must maintain adequate domestic U.S. supply
• A 25% tariff applies
• Strict KYC and end-use monitoring requirements

January 14, 2026 – The U.S. government formally authorizes Nvidia to distribute H200 chips in China .

March 2026 – U.S. officials draft regulations that would require global permits for all Nvidia/AMD AI chip sales worldwide, not just to China . Separately, new rules under consideration would require foreign nations to invest in U.S. AI data centers as a condition of chip access .

May 31, 2026 – The Commerce Department acts to close a loophole that had allowed hundreds of thousands of AI chips to reach Chinese subsidiaries outside of China (e.g., via third-country entities like data centers in Singapore and Malaysia) .

Broader Tensions

• Dual vetting deadlock: Even when U.S. licenses are granted, Beijing's own import approval process blocks shipments. This creates a situation where the U.S. has approved more buyers than China has allowed to actually take delivery .
• Domestic push: China is actively encouraging domestic AI chip alternatives (e.g., Huawei's Ascend), creating uncertainty about long-term demand for U.S. chips even if all regulatory hurdles are cleared .
• National security framing: Washington argues the H200 could support China's military modernization; Nvidia pushes to preserve access to one of the world's largest tech markets .
• Global control ambitions: The draft rules for worldwide AI chip sale permits (March 2026) signal a potential shift from China-specific controls to a global licensing regime .
• Loophole exploitation: The May 31, 2026 action revealed that hundreds of thousands of AI chips had already reached Chinese firms through foreign subsidiaries — a scale suggesting systematic evasion .

These three firms had not previously been reported as licensees. They expand the known set beyond China's largest internet groups and major electronics distributors . ZTE's inclusion is notable because the company and its unit ZTE Kangxun were historically on the U.S. Entity List — a restrictive trade blacklist — from which they were removed in 2017 .

The Broader Set of U.S.-Approved Chinese Firms

In May 2026, Reuters reported that the U.S. had cleared roughly 10 Chinese firms to buy Nvidia H200 chips, including :

• Alibaba
• Tencent
• ByteDance
• JD.com

Prior to that, other firms such as Baidu had also been reported as receiving licenses. The total pool of U.S.-approved Chinese buyers now exceeds a dozen entities . A few distributors, such as Foxconn and Lenovo, also received approval .

Shipment Status: Minimal to None, Then Signs of Movement

Despite the approvals, as of mid-May 2026, not a single H200 chip had actually been delivered to any Chinese buyer, according to Brookings . The logjam was due to:

• Beijing's reluctance to approve imports (explained below)
• Ongoing U.S. security review processes that stalled some approvals

In late May 2026, a "trivial" number of H200s were confirmed shipped to China by Under Secretary for Commerce Jeffrey Kessler . By July 2026, some Chinese cloud firms told partners and clients they may soon be able to obtain H200 chips, suggesting progress in Chinese import reviews .

China's Selective Purchasing Approvals (The "Other Side of the Coin")

China itself has imposed a parallel approval system. Key milestones:

• January 2026 – Beijing tells Alibaba and other top tech firms to prepare orders for H200 chips, signaling imminent formal approval .
• January 17, 2026 – Days after the U.S. approval, Chinese customs officials instructed agents that H200 shipments were not permitted entry, effectively imposing a de facto import ban .
• January 28, 2026 – China grants its first formal permission for H200 purchases, coinciding with a visit by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang .
• Mid-May 2026 – Brookings reported that despite Washington approving sales to 10 Chinese companies, Beijing's objections meant zero chips had been delivered .
• July 8, 2026 – China plans to allow top AI firms (Alibaba, ByteDance, DeepSeek) to buy a limited number of H200 chips, lifting its own domestic blockade . The approved quantity is believed to be under 200,000 units total, less than half of what the three companies had requested .

This creates an unusual dynamic: Washington has approved more entities than Beijing has allowed to actually purchase.

The Evolving U.S. Licensing Landscape

August 2025 – The U.S. Commerce Department begins granting licenses to Nvidia for its H20 chips, a China-compliant reduced-capability variant .

August 2025 – The Trump administration reaches an unprecedented agreement: Nvidia and AMD will remit 15% of their China AI chip revenue to the U.S. government in exchange for export licenses .

October 2025 – The U.S. Senate passes bipartisan legislation requiring Nvidia and AMD to ensure U.S. companies get priority access to their products before China .

January 13, 2026 – The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issues a landmark final rule shifting license review for Nvidia H200 and AMD MI325X (and similar chips) from a presumption of denial to case-by-case review, subject to strict conditions :

• Third-party testing to verify AI functionality before shipment
• China cannot receive more than 50% of the volume sold to U.S. clients
• Nvidia must maintain adequate domestic U.S. supply
• A 25% tariff applies
• Strict KYC and end-use monitoring requirements

January 14, 2026 – The U.S. government formally authorizes Nvidia to distribute H200 chips in China .

March 2026 – U.S. officials draft regulations that would require global permits for all Nvidia/AMD AI chip sales worldwide, not just to China . Separately, new rules under consideration would require foreign nations to invest in U.S. AI data centers as a condition of chip access .

May 31, 2026 – The Commerce Department acts to close a loophole that had allowed hundreds of thousands of AI chips to reach Chinese subsidiaries outside of China (e.g., via third-country entities like data centers in Singapore and Malaysia) .

Broader Tensions

• Dual vetting deadlock: Even when U.S. licenses are granted, Beijing's own import approval process blocks shipments. This creates a situation where the U.S. has approved more buyers than China has allowed to actually take delivery .
• Domestic push: China is actively encouraging domestic AI chip alternatives (e.g., Huawei's Ascend), creating uncertainty about long-term demand for U.S. chips even if all regulatory hurdles are cleared .
• National security framing: Washington argues the H200 could support China's military modernization; Nvidia pushes to preserve access to one of the world's largest tech markets .
• Global control ambitions: The draft rules for worldwide AI chip sale permits (March 2026) signal a potential shift from China-specific controls to a global licensing regime .
• Loophole exploitation: The May 31, 2026 action revealed that hundreds of thousands of AI chips had already reached Chinese firms through foreign subsidiaries — a scale suggesting systematic evasion .