Sales of a powerful Nvidia AI chip to China gets the greenlight, with conditions

On January 15, 2026 the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) reversed its blanket denial of Nvidia’s H200 AI accelerator by issuing a conditional “case‑by‑case” approval for sales to mainland China. The move—an unprecedented shift in Biden‑era export controls—signals a new policy calculus that balances national security with economic imperatives. For semiconductor executives, investors, and policymakers the decision reshapes revenue projections, supply‑chain dynamics, and geopolitical risk profiles.