Chinese University Purchased Nvidia H200 Chip Despite US Blacklist

Northwestern Polytechnical University, which has deep ties to China's People's Liberation Army and is on the US export blacklist, purchased and rented powerful Nvidia H200 artificial intelligence chips through suppliers.

Highlighting gaps in US efforts to block access to advanced technology, procurement records show that China's Northwestern Polytechnical University purchased two of Nvidia's powerful H200 artificial intelligence chips last month. According to a procurement record dated October 21 on the university's website, the institution acquired two H200 chips for its school of management, paying 874,700 yuan ($123,000).

The chips in question were sourced through Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology rather than directly from Nvidia. The university, which is under US sanctions and has a history of defense research for Beijing, obtained this hardware—normally subject to export license approvals that are denied for blacklisted institutions—through domestic suppliers.

Meanwhile, it was determined that the institution also gained access to H200 chips and other powerful Nvidia processors through five separate computing capacity rental contracts with Chinese companies this year. Other Chinese research institutions, such as Shenzhen University, Wuhan University of Technology, and Beihang University, were also found to have purchased or rented Nvidia chips subject to US restrictions via domestic suppliers.