About 600,000 Nvidia H200 AI chips are reportedly being held in Hong Kong as Beijing withholds approval for large-scale imports, balancing Chinese firms’ demand for advanced computing power against efforts to reduce reliance on U.

A report about a suspected Chinese intelligence asset and her alleged links to Nvidia chief Jensen Huang has triggered a fresh row. China has dismissed the allegations, while Nvidia has denied sharing sensitive information.

Nvidia reportedly told cloud partners to sell mostly outside China. Only a supplier with a waiting line can do that.