Northwestern Polytechnical University in China bought two Nvidia H200 AI chips from a local supplier in October, according to purchase records. The university is involved in military research
Northwestern Polytechnical University in China bought two Nvidia H200 AI chips from a local supplier in October, according to purchase records. The university is involved in military research and is on a US trade blacklist. The purchase shows that China can still get advanced US chips despite Washington’s restrictions on their sale.
The university paid 874,700 yuan (about $123,000) for the two chips, according to a notice posted on its website on October 21 and first reported by Reuters. The chips were bought for the university’s management department from a local company, Shaanxi Bosuan Network Technology. The university did not buy them directly from Nvidia.
The US Commerce Department put the university, based in Xi’an, on its trade blacklist in 2001 over claims that it was involved in spreading missile technology. The US made the rules stricter in 2019, meaning most requests to export US products to the university are now rejected.
The university is also one of China’s “Seven Sons of National Defense,” a group of schools known for their military research. It carries out research on military aircraft, missiles and satellites.
The university also rented access to powerful Nvidia chips. In January, its cybersecurity department signed two seven-month deals worth 441,700 yuan and 441,000 yuan. Each deal gave the university access to a server with eight Nvidia H200 chips. The chips were used to improve AI models and train them using reinforcement learning.
The same department also rented servers with eight Nvidia A100 chips and eight A800 chips. The US has banned sales of both types of chips to customers in China.
In April, another research institute at the university paid 375,000 yuan to use at least 24 A100 chips. The chips were used to study how structures and fluids behave.
Reuters reviewed 26 purchase and company records from 2026 and found that several other Chinese universities had also bought Nvidia chips banned from sale to China through local suppliers.
Shenzhen University bought three H100 chips for 769,800 yuan in September. In June, Wuhan University of Technology paid 355,000 yuan for a server with an H100 chip. It also bought four A100 chips for 344,000 yuan in a separate deal.
In April, Beihang University bought four A800 chips for 489,000 yuan. The school is also one of China’s “Seven Sons of National Defense” and helps with the country’s aircraft, space and military research.
Nvidia, Northwestern Polytechnical University and the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security did not reply when Reuters asked for comments. Reuters also added that it could not find a way to contact Shaanxi Bosuan.
The records come as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang faces questions from US lawmakers over his push to ease restrictions on chip sales to China. Huang believes that allowing American companies to keep selling chips to China would help the US stay ahead in AI and keep Chinese customers using American technology.
But some lawmakers from both parties see things differently. They worry that China could use the chips to develop better weapons, gather intelligence and strengthen its military. Some are also calling for tougher rules and closer checks on where the chips end up.
In January, the Trump administration began allowing some H200 chip sales to China, with each sale needing separate approval. However, the change did not apply to organizations on the US trade blacklist, including Northwestern Polytechnical University.
Huang has also faced more questions after reports linked him to Alice Huang, a former executive at a Singapore-based data center company who has been accused of spying for Beijing.
On November 8, Huang admitted to having an affair. Nvidia’s board opened an independent investigation the same day to find out whether a foreign intelligence agency had targeted him. Huang, 63, holds citizenship in both Taiwan and the US.
Republican Senator Kevin Cramer told Politico that Huang “has got to go,” citing the “potential for extortion.” Three Republican committee chairmen have also asked Huang to attend a briefing on November 18.
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