Chinese university bought Nvidia H200 chips despite curbs

A Chinese university with defence links bought advanced Nvidia H200 artificial intelligence chips despite US export controls, procurement notices showed.

Northwestern Polytechnical University in Xi’an bought two Nvidia H200 chips from Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology for 874,700 yuan, or about $131,200, according to a notice dated October 21. The chips were bought for the university’s management school.

A second notice dated September 4 showed the university’s cybersecurity school bought two Nvidia H200 chips for 796,000 yuan. The notices were no longer accessible on the university’s website on Thursday.

The H200 is subject to US export controls that limit direct shipments to China and place some restrictions on global resale. The notices showed the chips were bought from the Chinese supplier, not directly from Nvidia.

Northwestern Polytechnical University is one of China’s “Seven Sons of National Defence” universities, which conduct defence-related research and have links to the country’s military.

Asked about the purchases, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Thursday she was “not familiar” with the matter. She said China opposed the United States “overstretching the concept of national security” and suppressing Chinese institutions.

The university’s management and cybersecurity schools were contacted for comment.