Chinese AI Giants Face Severe Nvidia Chip Shortage Amid US Export Controls
HK01 · 4 SOURCESabout 6 hours ago3 MIN
Summary
Major Chinese technology companies including Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance and DeepSeek have placed massive orders for Nvidia AI chips amid intensifying US export controls, but face severe delivery shortfalls. According to Bloomberg, these companies collectively ordered approximately 6 million Nvidia RTX Pro 5500 chips valued at around $70 billion, with each chip priced at over $11,000 . The buyers expect to receive only tens of thousands of chips in the next four months—roughly 1% of their total order—with the first batch arriving by the end of this year and another shipment around February next year .
Separately, Reuters reports that approximately 600,000 Nvidia H200 AI accelerator chips are currently stored in Hong Kong warehouses, awaiting approval from Beijing for importation into the mainland . While Beijing has granted limited approvals in recent months, each major tech company has only received authorization for approximately 10,000 H200 chips—described as a drop in the ocean compared to their substantial AI model training needs . Small quantities have been shipped through intermediaries and indirect channels, though the exact numbers remain undisclosed .
Key Points
- Chinese tech giants ordered 6 million Nvidia RTX Pro 5500 chips worth $70 billion, expecting only ~1% delivery in next 4 months
- RTX Pro 5500's computing power falls below US export restriction thresholds, making it one of the higher-end options available to China
- About 600,000 Nvidia H200 chips sit in Hong Kong warehouses as Beijing has not approved large-scale mainland imports
- Each major company only approved for ~10,000 H200 chips despite AI model training demands being far greater
- Nvidia prioritizes more advanced, higher-margin chips for OpenAI and Anthropic over Chinese customers
- Nvidia chips are manufactured by TSMC, with Rubin and other next-gen products competing for production capacity
- Black market prices surged: 8-chip H200 servers now exceed 6 million RMB (3x last year); Blackwell servers over 20 million RMB
- Chinese firms turning to domestic alternatives: Huawei raised its top AI accelerator prices ~60% in September
- Nvidia chips manufactured by TSMC as production capacity increasingly allocated to newer products like Rubin
Why It Matters
The chip shortage exposes the precarious position of Chinese AI development as American export controls tighten while domestic alternatives remain insufficient. Nvidia's decision to prioritize Western clients like OpenAI and Anthropic underscores how geopolitical tensions are reshaping global technology supply chains. For Hong Kong, the massive stockpile of chips awaiting mainland approval highlights the city's continued role as a critical logistics hub, even as it navigates competing pressures between Beijing's strategic priorities and its traditional functions as an international business centre .
The chip shortage exposes the precarious position of Chinese AI development as American export controls tighten while domestic alternatives remain insufficient. Nvidia's decision to prioritize Western clients like OpenAI and Anthropic underscores how geopolitical tensions are reshaping global technology supply chains. For Hong Kong, the massive stockpile of chips awaiting mainland approval highlights the city's continued role as a critical logistics hub, even as it navigates competing pressures between Beijing's strategic priorities and its traditional functions as an international business centre .