PLA-Linked University Bought Nvidia H200 Chips Despite U.S. Blacklist, Procurement Records Show

Northwestern Polytechnical University, a Chinese institution with deep ties to the People's Liberation Army, purchased two Nvidia H200 AI chips in October 2026 despite being on the U.S. Entity List since 2001, according to procurement records reviewed by Reuters [7].

The university, a member of China's "Seven Sons of National Defense" group of elite defence-focused universities, paid 874,700 yuan ($123,000) for the chips through a domestic supplier, Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology, rather than directly from Nvidia. The H200 is among Nvidia's most capable processors for training and running advanced AI systems and requires U.S. export licence approvals that are normally denied for blacklisted entities.

Entity List Restrictions Unchanged

The U.S. Commerce Department added Northwestern Polytechnical to its trade blacklist in 2001 over alleged involvement in missile-proliferation activities and military research. Restrictions were tightened in 2019, making licences for exports of controlled U.S. technology to the university subject to a policy of denial in most circumstances [7].

The Trump administration began allowing some H200 exports to China on a case-by-case basis in January 2026. But that policy did not lift the separate restrictions applying to Entity List organisations such as Northwestern Polytechnical. The January licensing rules also require safeguards to prevent blacklisted entities and military end-users from remotely accessing chips exported under the policy [7].

Rented Computing Capacity as Alternative Channel

Beyond the outright purchase, procurement records show the university's cybersecurity school awarded two seven-month contracts in January 2026 for access to servers containing eight H200 chips each, worth 441,700 yuan and 441,000 yuan respectively. The contracts covered fine-tuning AI models and reinforcement-learning training [7].

The university also rented access to servers containing eight Nvidia A100 chips and eight A800 chips. The A100 and A800 are banned from export to all Chinese entities, though the H200 is the most advanced of those cited in the university's procurement records. In April, another university institute bought computing services requiring at least 24 A100 chips in a 375,000 yuan contract for structural and fluid-dynamics simulations [7].

The awards went to several little-known Chinese technology suppliers. The records offered scant information about where the processors originated or where the rented servers operated. Under Chinese law, public procurement agencies must verify that suppliers can fulfil orders before announcing winning bidders and signing contracts [7].

Wider Pattern Across Chinese Universities

Reuters reviewed 26 Chinese procurement and corporate records from 2026 and found multiple universities and research institutions buying U.S.-restricted Nvidia chips or renting access to Nvidia-powered computing services through domestic suppliers. Several had close links to China's defence industry or military research [7].

Shenzhen University bought three H100 processors — another high-end Nvidia AI chip banned by the U.S. — for 769,800 yuan in September. Wuhan University of Technology bought a server containing an H100 chip for 355,000 yuan in June and four A100 chips in a separate 344,000 yuan purchase. Beihang University, another of the Seven Sons of National Defense universities, bought four A800 processors for 489,000 yuan in April. Beihang has close ties to China's aerospace and defence industries and conducts research for military aviation and space programmes [7].

Two government procurement announcements in July and September named suppliers selected to provide computing services using Nvidia H800 and A800 chips restricted from export to China to the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. One listed H800 access at 10 yuan per chip-hour. A separate January procurement award named a supplier of six A100 chips worth 484,800 yuan for a Shenzhen-based public institution [7].

Prior Reporting on Indirect Channels

Reuters has previously reported that Chinese institutions acquired restricted Nvidia chips embedded in servers made by Super Micro Computer, Dell and Gigabyte through domestic resellers. The agency has also documented an underground market in China for restricted Nvidia chips sourced from overseas inventories and third-country intermediaries. Last week, Reuters reported that small quantities of H200 chips had reached China through indirect routes while Beijing withheld approval for large-scale imports [7].

Northwestern Polytechnical, Nvidia and the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security did not respond to requests for comment. Reuters could not determine contact details for Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology [7].

Congressional Pressure Mounts

The findings come as Nvidia and its CEO Jensen Huang face mounting scrutiny in Washington over lobbying for looser restrictions on sales of AI chips to China, following reports alleging Huang was targeted by a Chinese spying operation. Huang has argued that continued U.S. sales to China would preserve American technological leadership and keep Chinese customers reliant on U.S. technology. But lawmakers from both parties say access to Nvidia's most powerful AI chips can speed China's development of AI systems for weapons design, intelligence analysis and military modernisation [7].

Three Republican congressional committee chairmen have requested a briefing with Huang on November 18 over his reported contacts with an alleged Chinese intelligence operative. Democrats and Republicans in Congress have urged stronger controls on China's access to advanced AI chips, such as chip-tracking requirements and greater congressional oversight of exports [7].