By Micah Jonah
January 13, 2026
U.S. chipmaker Nvidia has denied reports that it requires customers to make full upfront payments for its H200 artificial intelligence chips, saying it would never demand payment for products that have not been delivered.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Nvidia responded to a January 8 Reuters report which said the company had imposed unusually strict payment terms on Chinese customers seeking access to its advanced AI chips.
“Nvidia would never require customers to pay for products they do not receive,” a company spokesperson said.
The clarification follows growing scrutiny over Nvidia’s sales conditions in China, where demand for high performance AI chips remains strong, amid regulatory uncertainty, tightening geopolitical restrictions.
According to a source familiar with Nvidia’s dealings in China, the company’s standard terms have historically included advance payment requirements, although customers were sometimes allowed to pay a deposit instead of the full amount upfront.
However, the source added that Nvidia had been particularly strict with the H200 chip, given uncertainty over whether Chinese regulators would approve shipments of the product.
Industry analysts say such a payment structure, if enforced, would effectively shift financial risk from Nvidia to customers, forcing buyers to commit capital without certainty that Beijing would approve imports or that the chips could ultimately be deployed as planned.
The H200 chip is one of Nvidia’s most advanced AI processors, widely sought after for high end computing, data centres and artificial intelligence applications.
The issue highlights the broader challenges facing global semiconductor companies operating in China, as regulatory approvals, export controls and political tensions increasingly shape access to critical technology.
Nvidia did not provide further details on how it is managing regulatory risks, tied to H200 shipments, but reiterated that its business practices remain aligned with standard commercial principles and customer protections.
