Nvidia, AMD to pay 15% of China chip sale revenues to US, official says – The Economic Times
Two of the world’s biggest chipmakers, Nvidia and AMD, have agreed to hand over 15% of their China sales revenue to the U.S. government. This unusual deal will allow them to secure export licences and continue selling some of their most advanced chips to the world’s second-largest economy.
According to sources, the agreement covers Nvidia’s H20 AI chips and AMD’s MI308 chips. Both companies had previously faced U.S. restrictions on selling these products to China over national security concerns.
Nvidia told the BBC it follows U.S. government rules and hopes that export controls will still allow America to compete in global markets. “America cannot repeat the 5G mistake and lose tech leadership,” the company said, calling its AI technology a potential global standard. AMD has not yet commented.
Analysts say the deal is “unprecedented” and shows how costly it has become for tech firms to maintain access to China amid growing trade tensions. Critics also question whether a payment scheme solves the underlying security issues.
The H20 chip was designed specifically for China after earlier U.S. restrictions in 2023. Sales were banned in April 2024 under the Trump administration, but the decision has now been reversed. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has been lobbying for months and reportedly met President Trump last week to help secure the agreement.
This move comes as U.S.–China trade tensions show signs of easing. Beijing has loosened rare earth export controls, and Washington has lifted some restrictions on chip design software in China. In May, both sides agreed to a 90-day pause on new tariffs, although an extension beyond the August 12 deadline is still uncertain.
Meanwhile, U.S. trade policy under Trump continues to push big companies to invest more at home. Apple, Micron, and Nvidia have all announced massive U.S.-based projects worth hundreds of billions of dollars. Nvidia’s plans include building the first entirely American-made AI supercomputers.
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