The top technology companies in China have been ordering a lot of NVIDIA enterprise-grade GPUs, even though U.S. sanctions have prevented the shipment of A100 and H100 models (plus AMD's MI250 Instinct accelerator) to the nation in recent times. ByteDance - best known for developing TikTok - managed to grab plenty of Ampere enterprise units prior to last Autumn's cutoff period, and has continued to purchase Team Green's H800 GPU, which is a cut-down version of the H100 flagship. Smaller outfits are relying on less direct sources to acquire HBC GPUs—according to a Reuters investigative article, international trade restrictions have created a thriving black market for "top-end NVIDIA AI chips."

Their reporters carried out some on-site sleuthing: "Visiting the famed Huaqiangbei electronics area in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen is a good bet - in particular, the SEG Plaza skyscraper whose first 10 floors are crammed with shops selling everything from camera parts to drones. The chips are not advertised but asking discreetly works...They don't come cheap. Two vendors there, who spoke with Reuters in person on condition of anonymity, said they could provide small numbers of A100 artificial intelligence chips made by the U.S. chip designer, pricing them at $20,000 a piece - double the usual price."Tech startups and universities in the region are eager to get their hands on the still very powerful and unrestricted A100 GPU—an uptick of interest in AI development has likely played a part in creating a new segment within the underground market, and buyers are quite happy to pay a premium for this tech. Buying or selling high-end US-designed hardware is not illegal in China, but some level of cautious conduct is required to escape unwanted attention. Reuters spoke to Ivan Lau, a co-founder of the Hong Kong-based startup Pantheon Lab. He stated that his organization was attempting to buy 2-4 A100 cards: "We are talking with two vendors now to get some...those vendors, who bought the chips outside the U.S., were quoting HK$150,000 ($19,150) per card. They told us straight up that there will be no warranty or support."

The Reuters team contacted a number of sellers operating out of Hong Kong and mainland China, who all admitted that it was quite easy to acquire small shipments of A100 GPUs from various sources—including excess stock (from North America) or trade partners incorporated in nearby countries (India, Taiwan and Singapore). These vendors are reportedly doing quite well for themselves due to an "intense demand" for AI processors in the region. Reuters reported these discoveries to NVIDIA and the U.S. Department of Commerce—Team Green's response re-iterated that the company does not allow exports of the A100 or H100 to China. Their H800 model is offered as an alternative (compliant with U.S. law) and: "If we receive information that a customer is breaching their agreement with us and exporting restricted products in violation of the law, we would take immediate and appropriate action."

A U.S. Department of Commerce spokesperson responded (to Reuters) and expressed their view that export control measures have had a "substantial impact" on the availability of high-end chips in China. Ongoing underground market activity was "not a surprise" to them, and matters are being investigated. Charlie Chai, a Shanghai-based analyst at 86Research told Reuters that international authorities are probably not too concerned about a limited number of units escaping from controlled environments, but the situation could change: "Only if/when China poses a greater threat following significant catch-ups will we see more strict enforcement."