China leaves door open to Nvidia dialogue despite ban

China says it’s open to keeping talks going with Nvidia, even though its top internet watchdog just told major tech companies to completely stop buying the company’s AI chips.

On Thursday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry responded to the reported enforcement by saying it wants to keep communication alive with “all parties” to maintain global supply chains.

The comment followed news that the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) has officially ordered companies like ByteDance and Alibaba to halt all purchases and testing of Nvidia’s RTX Pro 6000D chip—hardware that was literally custom-built for the Chinese market.

According to the Financial Times, this ban from the CAC goes way beyond earlier restrictions. Those earlier curbs only targeted Nvidia’s H20 chip, which was already limited to meet U.S. export rules.

But this time, the regulator blocked the RTX Pro 6000D as well. The chip was made specifically for China, but that didn’t matter. Chinese firms were already preparing to buy tens of thousands of units.

They had even started testing and were working with Nvidia’s server suppliers to bring the chips online. But after the CAC’s order dropped, everything stopped cold.

Jensen Huang confirms the ban, says Nvidia excluded from China forecasts

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang confirmed the ban during a press briefing in London on Wednesday. Speaking to reporters, Jensen said he was “disappointed” by the decision and admitted it had already impacted Nvidia’s operations.

He explained that the company had guided analysts not to include China in future earnings projections. Jensen said, “We can only be in service of a market if the country wants us to be.”

He also said, “We probably contributed more to the China market than most countries have. And I’m disappointed with what I see.” But Jensen made it clear that Nvidia understands the broader fight between Beijing and Washington. “They have larger agendas to work out between China and the United States, and I’m understanding of that,” he added.

The timing of the CAC’s order suggests Beijing no longer sees Nvidia’s presence as necessary. Multiple people familiar with the situation told the Financial Times that the ban was sent out this week and that Chinese tech companies were told to shut down testing and cancel their orders of the RTX Pro 6000D.

These firms, including ByteDance and Alibaba, had already begun technical verification with Nvidia’s ecosystem partners. Once the message from the regulator came through, they told suppliers to shut it down.

Regulators say local chips now match Nvidia’s performance

The decision didn’t come out of nowhere. The CAC reportedly made the call after officials concluded that domestic Chinese chips have now reached performance levels comparable to Nvidia’s AI products in use inside China.

With homegrown chips catching up, regulators saw no need to keep importing high-end foreign hardware, especially from an American company subject to U.S. export controls.

The move fits into a broader strategy. Beijing has been aggressively building its own semiconductor supply chain and wants to reduce reliance on overseas tech.

This latest ban seems to be permanent, with no hint that the door might reopen for Nvidia anytime soon. Even though the RTX Pro 6000D was designed with China in mind, regulators didn’t make exceptions.

Financial markets reacted immediately. Nvidia’s stock dropped by roughly 3% on Wednesday following the Financial Times report. The company has had a rough few years navigating its China business. Jensen described the experience as “a bit of a roller coaster,” and now, Nvidia has been forced to brace for more volatility without its Chinese customers.

Lin Jian, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, kept his response vague but made Beijing’s stance clear during Thursday’s press conference. “We have always opposed discriminatory practices against specific countries on economic, trade, scientific and technological issues,” Lin said, without directly addressing the Nvidia ban.

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