Nvidia is backtracking on its China sales pullout. It’s now applying to restart H20 AI chip shipments to the country.
The U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick tied this move to ongoing rare earth element trade talks with China. Nvidia isn’t alone — AMD plans to restart sales of its MI308 AI chip in China too.
Rare earth elements like lanthanum and cerium, mostly mined in China, are crucial for tech gear and EV batteries. The U.S.-China trade tussle hinges heavily on these materials. 
Not everyone approves. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi slammed the decision, warning it “would not only hand our foreign adversaries our most advanced technologies, but is also dangerously inconsistent with this administration’s previously-stated position on export controls for China.”
Howard Lutnick pushed back in an interview with CNBC:
“We don’t sell them our best stuff, not our second best stuff, not even our third best.”
He added China is only getting Nvidia’s “fourth best” chip.
This follows rumors Nvidia might design a China-specific AI chip to skirt U.S. export rules. The Biden administration’s AI Diffusion Rule was scrapped by Trump’s team in May and export guidelines remain unclear.
U.S. AI chip export rules are still in flux. Bloomberg reported that the Trump administration considered curbing exports to countries like Malaysia and Thailand over smuggling concerns. Malaysia started requiring trade permits for U.S.-made AI chips this week.
TechCrunch reached out to Nvidia for comment.
