Nvidia AI chip sales in China stall as Huawei gains market share
8 reported2 unconfirmed
A single-source report from ABC News indicates that Nvidia's AI chip sales in China have stalled as local chipmakers, particularly Huawei, have taken the lead in the domestic market. The article states that U.S. export controls initially blocked sales of Nvidia's advanced H200 AI chips in China, and by the time a reprieve was granted under President Trump, Beijing had shifted to encouraging domestically designed chips. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang acknowledged that the U.S. has lost its edge in China's advanced AI chips market, noting that Chinese competitors have become "giants." A report by Bernstein estimated Nvidia had about a 40% market share in China's AI chips market in 2025, roughly matched by Huawei, and predicted Nvidia's share would shrink to around 8% in 2026 while Huawei's would grow to about 50%. The article notes that Nvidia's global sales are still expanding, with expected revenue of around $91 billion for May-July 2026, excluding any data center compute revenue from China.
What’s reported
U.S. export controls initially stalled sales of Nvidia's advanced H200 AI chips in China.
By the time President Trump agreed to their sale, Beijing had switched to encouraging use of domestically designed chips from local rivals led by Huawei.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the U.S. has lost its edge in China's advanced AI chips market as Chinese competitors have become "giants."
A Bernstein report estimated Nvidia had about a 40% market share in China's AI chips market in 2025, roughly matched by Huawei.
Bernstein predicted Nvidia's market share will shrink to around 8% in 2026, while Huawei's will likely grow to about 50%.
Nvidia expects around $91 billion of revenue in May-July 2026, up from nearly $82 billion in the previous quarter, excluding any data center compute revenue from China.
Nvidia's latest annual revenue was almost $216 billion, while Huawei's was $126 billion for a comparable period.
DeepSeek's latest V4 AI model, rolled out in April 2026, was adapted for Huawei's advanced Ascend chips.
Open questions
The article does not specify the exact timeline for when U.S. export controls were imposed or when the reprieve was granted.
Beijing's public stance on imports of H200 chips is described as unclear, and Nvidia has said it has not sold H200 chips in China.
Key figures
Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia
Antonia Hmaidi, with the Mercator Institute for China Studies
He Hui, director of semiconductor research at Omdia
He Tingbo, head of Huawei’s semiconductor business
Rui Ma, founder of Tech Buzz China
Paul Triolo, a partner at DGA-Albright Stonebridge Group
Phelix Lee, an analyst at Morningstar
Brady Wang, a Taipei-based semiconductor analyst with Counterpoint Research
Sources: abcnews.com
