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The Chinese military, state-run AI research institutes, and universities, have been buying the highest-end Nvidia semiconductors banned by the US from export to China in small batches, according to a Reuters review of tender documents.

The documents reveal dozens of transactions involving Nvidia's A100, as well as the more potent H100 chips – both banned by the U.S. in 2022 – along with their less advanced counterparts, the A800 and H800, developed for but also barred from the Chinese market. The graphic processing units (GPUs) by Nvidia, vital for AI due to their efficiency in processing large data volumes for machine-learning tasks.

Interestingly, neither Nvidia nor its authorized retailers appear in these transactions – pointing directly to a burgeoning underground market thriving on excess stock from large shipments to U.S. firms or imports via third-party countries like India, Taiwan, and Singapore. This black-market ecosystem poses a formidable barrier to U.S. efforts in curbing the flow of these critical technologies.

Nvidia maintains that it has adhered to all applicable export control laws, and expects the same from its customers. While the company says it's willing to take action against unlawful resale, their ability to do so is questionable.

The US Department of Commerce, meanwhile, continues to stress the importance of tightening export controls.

Chris Miller, a professor at Tufts University, says that while the goal is "to throw sand in the gears of China's AI development," enforcement is a pipe dream.

The Reuters review sheds light on over 100 tenders for the procurement of A100 chips by state entities, with post-ban tenders indicating purchases of the A800 model. Notable buyers include Tsinghua University, often likened to MIT, and various military entities, with the purposes of these acquisitions ranging from AI development to undisclosed military uses.

That said, China won't be building GPT 5 anytime soon…

The Reuters report comes days after the Wall Street Journal reported that Chinese customers don't want nerf'd chips designed for export.

Both Alibaba and Tencent are shifting some of their advanced semiconductor orders to Huwai and other domestic companies, and are relying more on chips they can develop in-house, according to the report.

Chinese cloud companies currently source around 80% of their high-end AI chips from Nvidia – a figure likely to fall to 50% – 60% over the next five years, according to TrendForce analyst, Frank Kung – who added that tightening US chip controls in the future would result in additional pressure on Nvidia's China sales.