AI chips, notably Nvidia chips, are always in the limelight since artificial intelligence has revolutionized the globe.
A recent news update informs that China has given its top AI startup, DeepSeek, approval to buy Nvidia's H200 artificial intelligence chips with regulatory conditions that are still being finalized, reports Reuters.
As reported by Reuters, on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, ByteDance, Alibaba, and Tencent had been given permission to purchase more than 400,000 H200 chips in total.
Meanwhile, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told reporters in Taipei on Thursday that his company had not received such information.
Huang added that he believed that China was still finalizing the license, and Nvidia did not clearly comment on DeepSeek's approval.
As per sources, China's industry and commerce ministries have granted approvals for all four companies but have stipulated that they will impose conditions that are still being finalized.
These conditions are being decided by China's state planner, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), while China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Commerce, and NDRC have not confirmed yet.
DeepSeek rattled the global tech sector early last year by rolling out AI models that cost a fraction of those being developed by U.S. rivals such as OpenAI.
The H200, Nvidia's second most powerful AI chip, has emerged as a major flashpoint in U.S.-China relations.
Despite strong demand from Chinese firms and U.S. approval for exports, Beijing's hesitation to allow imports has been the main barrier to shipments.
The U.S. earlier this month formally cleared the way for Nvidia to sell the H200 to China; however, Chinese authorities have the final say on whether they would allow it to be shipped in.
Any purchases of H200 chips by DeepSeek could draw scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers. Reuters reported earlier this week that a senior U.S. lawmaker had alleged that Nvidia had helped DeepSeek hone artificial intelligence models that were later used by the Chinese military, according to a letter sent to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
Additional sources reported that DeepSeek is expected to launch its next-generation AI model, V4, featuring strong coding capabilities, in mid-February 2026.