Nvidia Chips Reach China's Military-Linked Universities Despite US Export Curbs

A Chinese university with close ties to the People's Liberation Army (PLA) purchased two Nvidia H200 artificial intelligence (AI) chips through a domestic supplier despite being on the US export blacklist, according to an exclusive Reuters investigation based on procurement records. The records, however, provide limited information about the chips' origins or how they reached the supplier.

Northwestern Polytechnical University bought the two processors for 874,700 yuan ($123,000) in October. Reuters also found that the university secured access to H200 and other restricted Nvidia processors through five contracts with Chinese companies for rented computing capacity. A review of 26 Chinese procurement and corporate records further revealed that other universities and research institutions, including those with links to China's defence industry, had purchased restricted Nvidia chips or contracted computing services powered by them.

The findings come amid growing scrutiny in Washington of Nvidia and its chief executive, Jensen Huang, over his lobbying for fewer restrictions on AI chip sales to China. Reports alleging that Huang was targeted by a Chinese spying operation have added to the scrutiny.

Huang has argued that continued US sales to China would preserve American technological leadership and keep Chinese customers reliant on US technology. However, some US lawmakers have warned that access to Nvidia's advanced processors could accelerate China's development of AI systems for weapons design, intelligence analysis and military modernisation.

Three Republican congressional committee chairmen have requested a briefing with Huang on November 18 over his reported contacts with an alleged Chinese intelligence operative. Democrats and Republicans in Congress have also called for stronger safeguards on China's access to advanced AI chips, including chip-tracking requirements and greater congressional oversight of exports.

Northwestern Polytechnical's H200 Purchase

Based in Xi'an in north-western China, Northwestern Polytechnical University is part of the country's 'Seven Sons of National Defense', a group of elite defence-focused universities. The institution conducts research related to military aircraft, missiles and satellites.

According to Reuters, an October 21 procurement record on the university's website showed that its management school purchased two Nvidia H200 processors from Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology, a Chinese supplier, for 874,700 yuan ($123,000). The chips were not purchased directly from Nvidia.

The H200 is among Nvidia's most capable processors for training and running advanced AI systems. Its export to China requires US export licence approval, with applications from blacklisted institutions such as Northwestern Polytechnical normally subject to denial.

The university also awarded two seven-month contracts in January through its cybersecurity school for access to servers containing eight H200 chips each. The contracts, worth 441,700 yuan and 441,000 yuan, covered fine-tuning AI models and reinforcement-learning training.

Procurement records further show that the university rented access to servers containing eight Nvidia A100 processors and eight A800 processors. Both models are subject to US export controls on shipments to China, while the H200 is the most advanced processor identified in the university's procurement records.

In April, another institute at the university awarded a 375,000 yuan contract for computing services requiring at least 24 A100 chips. The services were intended for structural and fluid-dynamics simulations.

The contracts were awarded to several little-known Chinese technology suppliers. However, the procurement documents provided limited information about the processors' origins or the locations of the servers hosting them.

US Export Restrictions On Blacklisted University

The US Commerce Department added Northwestern Polytechnical University to its Entity List in 2001 over its alleged involvement in missile-proliferation activities and military research.

The restrictions were tightened in 2019, making licences for exports of controlled US technology to the university subject to a policy of denial in most circumstances.

In January 2026, US President Donald Trump's administration revised its export licensing policy to allow certain qualifying exports of H200 chips from the United States to China to be considered on a case-by-case basis, subject to security requirements. The change did not extend the same treatment to covered reexports from abroad or in-country transfers destined for China, which remained subject to a presumption of denial.

However, the policy change did not remove the separate restrictions applicable to organisations on the Entity List, including Northwestern Polytechnical University.

The January licensing rules also require safeguards to prevent blacklisted organisations and military end-users from remotely accessing chips exported under the policy. These provisions cover H200 processors as well as less advanced models.

Under Chinese law, public procurement agencies must verify that suppliers can fulfil orders before announcing successful bidders and signing contracts. However, the records reviewed by Reuters offered little information about how the suppliers obtained the restricted processors or where the rented servers operated.

Other Universities Named In Procurement Records

The procurement records reviewed by Reuters point to a wider market for restricted Nvidia processors and computing services among Chinese universities and research institutions.

A Shenzhen University procurement record showed that the institution purchased three Nvidia H100 processors, another high-end chip restricted from export to China, for 769,800 yuan in September.

Wuhan University of Technology bought a server containing an H100 processor for 355,000 yuan in June. It also purchased four A100 processors in a separate transaction worth 344,000 yuan.

Beihang University, another member of the Seven Sons of National Defense, purchased four A800 processors for 489,000 yuan in April. The university has close links to China's aerospace and defence industries and conducts research related to military aviation and space programmes.

Two government procurement announcements issued in July and September named suppliers selected to provide computing services using Nvidia H800 and A800 processors to the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. Both models are restricted from export to China. One of the announcements listed access to H800 computing capacity at 10 yuan per chip-hour.

A separate January procurement award named a supplier for six A100 processors worth 484,800 yuan for a public institution based in Shenzhen.

According to Reuters, its review of 26 Chinese procurement and corporate records from this year found universities and research institutions either purchasing US-restricted Nvidia processors or renting access to computing services powered by them. Several institutions had close links to China's defence industry or military research.

Restricted Nvidia Chips Reach Chinese Institutions Through Domestic Suppliers

The findings add to previous Reuters investigations into how restricted Nvidia processors have reached Chinese institutions through domestic suppliers and intermediaries.

Reuters has previously reported that Chinese institutions acquired restricted Nvidia chips embedded in servers manufactured by Super Micro Computer, Dell and Gigabyte through domestic resellers. The news agency has also documented an underground market in China for restricted Nvidia processors sourced from overseas inventories and third-country intermediaries.

Last week, Reuters reported that small quantities of H200 chips had reached China through indirect routes, even as Beijing withheld approval for large-scale imports.

The procurement records reviewed in the latest investigation show how Chinese institutions can obtain access to restricted processors through domestic suppliers, either by purchasing chips outright or contracting for computing capacity on servers containing them.

Northwestern Polytechnical University, Nvidia and the US Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security, which oversees export controls, did not respond to requests for comment, Reuters reported. The news agency said it could not determine contact details for Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology. The other universities named in the procurement records also did not respond to requests for comment.