Chinese State Media Raises Security Concerns Over Nvidia's H20 AI Chips

China state media says Nvidia H20 GPUs are unsafe and outdated, urges Chinese companies to avoid them -- says chip is 'neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe'

A social media account linked to Chinese state media wrote an article on WeChat asserting that Nvidia's H20 chips are neither technologically advanced nor environmentally friendly. According to Reuters, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, is connected to China Central Television, which is a key organization in the country's state media (propaganda) apparatus. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," Yuyuan Tantian said in the article (a translation, we assume). The H20 chip is Nvidia's answer to Washington's ban on high-end AI GPU exports to China. Although its performance is only a fraction of what the top-of-the-line H200 can accomplish, it still sold surprisingly well, resulting in Nvidia posting a record revenue despite temporarily falling under export control between April and July 2025. Aside from its reduced horsepower, Chinese authorities are also concerned with possible hidden geo-tracking and backdoors in the Green Team silicon. The U.S. Congress introduced a bill to enforce location tracking of high-end gaming and AI GPUs in mid-May, with the White House mulling doing the same earlier this month. Because of this, China has raised concerns about the security of the H20 chips that Nvidia sells in the country, even going as far as summoning the AI chip giant to explain if it had any backdoor security risks. This isn't the only criticism of Nvidia in Chinese media in recent times. People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, said that Nvidia should convince the Chinese people that its chips do not have security risks. However, the company has firmly denied any such risk, emphasizing that its GPUs have no kill switches, no backdoors, and no spyware. Although the headlining statement is not from a government source, China often uses state-linked social media accounts to shape its agenda and signal changes in its official stance without making a direct commitment. So, the criticism may be part of a broader campaign to steer domestic firms away from foreign AI hardware and toward homegrown alternatives like Huawei's Ascend chips. Despite all these issues, many Chinese organizations and entities still purchase Nvidia products. Aside from the massive demand for H20 AI GPUs, there's also a burgeoning black market for banned AI chips. It's been estimated that a billion dollars' worth of these GPUs have been sold in the past quarter, with some companies already advertising the upcoming B300, which is expected to arrive later this year. The WeChat post is likely the central government signaling its people to slowly move away from Nvidia's products and use alternative homegrown AI GPUs instead. However, the ecosystem that the company delivers makes its local competitors a much less compelling alternative.

Chinese state media says Nvidia H20 chips not safe for China

BEIJING, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Nvidia's (NVDA.O), opens new tab H20 chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the U.S. chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks - a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust. Reporting by Yukun Zhang and Brenda Goh; Editing by Saad Sayeed Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Chinese state media says Nvidia H20 chips not safe for China

Visitors visit the NVIDIA booth at the 3rd China International Supply Chain Expo in Beijing, China, on July 20, 2025. Nvidia's chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the U.S. chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks - a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust.

Nvidia claps back against Chinese accusations its H20 chips pose a security risk

Chip giant Nvidia pushed back Sunday in response to allegations from Chinese state media that its H20 artificial intelligence chips are a national security risk for China. Earlier in the day, Reuters reported Yuyuan Tantian, an account affiliated with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat that the Nvidia H20 chips are not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the Yuyuan Tantian article reportedly said, adding that the article said chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." In response, a Nvidia spokesperson told CNBC that "cybersecurity is critically important to us. NVIDIA does not have 'backdoors' in our chips that would give anyone a remote way to access or control them." Nvidia on Tuesday similarly rejected Chinese accusations that its AI chips include a hardware function that could remotely deactivate the chips, also known as a "kill switch." Tensions between the U.S. and China on semiconductor export controls have escalated in recent weeks, even after Nvidia resumed sales of its H20 chip to China. Chinese state media has framed the H20 chip as inferior and dangerous compared to Nvidia's other chips, while the company has defended its chips. The company's resumption of its H20 shipments reversed a previous ban on H20 sales that was placed in April by the Trump administration. Nvidia's H20 chips -- a less-advanced semiconductor compared to its flagship H100 and B100 chips, for example -- were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after initial export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. U.S. export controls on some Nvidia chips are rooted in national security concerns that Beijing could use the more advanced chips to gain an advantage broadly in AI, as well as in its military applications.

Chinese State Media Says Nvidia H20 Chips Not Safe for China

BEIJING (Reuters) -Nvidia's H20 chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the U.S. chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks - a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust. (Reporting by Yukun Zhang and Brenda Goh; Editing by Saad Sayeed)

Chinese state media says Nvidia H20 chips not safe for China - The Economic Times

The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat.Nvidia's H20 chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the US imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of US President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the US chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks - a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust.

Chinese state media says Nvidia H20 chips not safe for China

A Chinese state media account has raised security concerns about Nvidia's H20 chips, developed for the Chinese market after U.S. export restrictions. The account, affiliated with CCTV, claims the chips are not technologically advanced, environmentally friendly, or secure, alleging potential backdoor access. This follows previous criticism from People's Daily, demanding security proofs from Nvidia to regain market trust. Nvidia's H20 chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the U.S. chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks - a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust.

China Still Isn't Ready to Bet on H20 AI Chips Amid Ongoing State Media Concerns Over Security & Hardware Backdoors Despite NVIDIA's Assurances

NVIDIA's H20 AI chips won't be easy to get into Chinese AI markets, as the local state media is voicing opposition against the move, citing potential backdoors. NVIDIA's H20 AI Chips Aren't "Advanced or Environmentally Friendly", Says State Media Broadcaster Team Green spent a lengthy time pursuing approval for its AI chips to flow into China, and after lobbying the Trump administration, Jensen did get the green light a few weeks ago. However, things have started to take a turn after a Chinese regulator opened an investigation into the H20 AI chips to identify security flaws that could return to Washington. Now, Reuters reports that Chinese state media CCTV broadcaster claims that the H20 chip isn't safe for the domestic AI markets, as it comes with several backdoors. When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it. -Reuters This isn't the only occasion where China has opposed the flow of H20 AI chips, as the nation's cyberspace watchdog recently called out NVIDIA to investigate potential backdoors, including chip surveillance and a 'kill switch'. In response to the claims, NVIDIA was quick enough to push out a blog post, claiming that they would never integrate such mechanisms in their chips, but despite the company's assurances, it seems like the Chinese media is still skeptical. It is important to note that the Trump administration hasn't ruled out implementing backdoors or similar mechanisms in AI chips going to the likes of China. Interestingly, this move is actually a part of the government's 'AI action' plan, which we have discussed in depth previously, hence ruling out the existence of the 'so-called' backdoors isn't entirely possible for now. However, with the existing H20 AI chips, NVIDIA says there's no chance of such measures being onboarded. NVIDIA needs to take Chinese AI markets into account if they are eager to sell the massive chunk of inventory they have onboard, and while the firm's PR machine is actively working to address the claims, it seems like the domestic media still doesn't believe in NVIDIA's statements.

Chinese state media says Nvidia H20 chips not safe for China

Nvidia's H20 chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of President Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks -- a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust.

Chinese state media says Nvidia H20 chips not safe for China

BEIJING (Reuters) -Nvidia's H20 chips pose security concerns for China, a social media account affiliated with China's state media said on Sunday, after Beijing raised concerns over backdoor access in those chips. The H20 chips are also not technologically advanced or environmentally friendly, the account, Yuyuan Tantian, which is affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV, said in an article published on WeChat. "When a type of chip is neither environmentally friendly, nor advanced, nor safe, as consumers, we certainly have the option not to buy it," the article concluded. Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. H20 artificial intelligence chips were developed by Nvidia for the Chinese market after the U.S. imposed export restrictions on advanced AI chips in late 2023. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump banned their sales in April amid escalating trade tensions with China, but reversed the ban in July. China's cyberspace watchdog said on July 31 that it had summoned Nvidia to a meeting, asking the U.S. chipmaker to explain whether its H20 chips had any backdoor security risks - a hidden method of bypassing normal authentication or security controls. Nvidia later said its products had no "backdoors" that would allow remote access or control. In its article, Yuyuan Tantian said Nvidia chips could achieve functions including "remote shutdown" through a hardware "backdoor." Yuyuan Tantian's comment followed criticism against Nvidia by People's Daily, another Chinese state media outlet. In a commentary earlier this month, People's Daily said Nvidia must produce "convincing security proofs" to eliminate Chinese users' worries over security risks in its chips and regain market trust. (Reporting by Yukun Zhang and Brenda Goh; Editing by Saad Sayeed)