Washington: A U.S. congressman has formally called on the Commerce Department to clarify the rationale behind a controversial Trump-era policy reversal that permits the sale of Nvidia’s advanced H200 artificial intelligence (AI) chips to China. The move has sparked alarm among lawmakers and national security experts, who warn that allowing China access to cutting-edge AI hardware could undermine America’s strategic and technological advantage in the global AI race.
Representative John Moolenaar, a Republican member of the House select committee on China, requested detailed documentation from Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick explaining the basis for the decision. The letter demands a comprehensive briefing by mid-January, highlighting growing concern within Congress over the potential national security implications. Moolenaar emphasized the need for transparency, questioning the justification for easing longstanding export restrictions that had previously barred China from acquiring the most powerful U.S. AI semiconductors.
The focus of the debate is Nvidia’s H200 chip, part of the company’s Hopper series, which is significantly more powerful than the H20 model that had been the most advanced chip legally exportable to China. Under prior U.S. policy, these high-performance chips were considered critical to maintaining America’s technological edge in AI development. Trump’s reversal marks a significant departure from restrictions upheld both during his first term and under the Biden administration.
Moolenaar’s letter notes that the policy shift may have been influenced by claims about China’s AI capabilities, including reports that Huawei Technologies had made performance gains in its AI chip programs. The congressman argued that these claims were largely based on hardware obtained through questionable channels rather than domestic innovation, raising doubts about the wisdom of loosening export controls at this stage.
“As AI evolves, aggregate computing power not theoretical per-chip efficiency will remain the engine of progress,” Moolenaar wrote, warning that enabling China to acquire H200 chips could erode the strategic technological lead the United States has built over the past decade. The congressman’s letter underscores bipartisan concern over the potential for high-end U.S. technology to accelerate China’s AI capabilities.
The Trump administration defended the policy change as a pragmatic measure to balance domestic technology competitiveness with export regulation. Officials argued that by creating a legal channel for high-end chip sales, China would be less likely to rely on illegal smuggling, while American companies like Nvidia would benefit commercially. Nonetheless, critics caution that the national security risks may outweigh the economic benefits.
Bipartisan resistance is already emerging in Congress. Several senators have introduced legislation aimed at blocking further easing of AI chip export restrictions, reflecting concern over China’s growing access to pivotal AI hardware. The debate highlights the tension between promoting U.S. technology exports and safeguarding national security in an era of rapid AI innovation.
Chinese companies, including Alibaba and ByteDance, have reportedly shown strong interest in procuring H200 chips, underscoring the commercial stakes of the policy decision. As the global AI race intensifies, the controversy surrounding Nvidia’s H200 chips may become a defining flashpoint in U.S.-China technology relations, with policymakers navigating the delicate balance between economic interests and strategic security.
This development has placed both the U.S. administration and Congress under pressure to provide clarity, as the implications extend far beyond commercial transactions, touching the broader geopolitical landscape of AI and advanced computing technologies.