US Select Committee alleges Nvidia's AI tech is ‘powering Chinese military’ amid CEO Jensen Huang's bid for chip export

A group of United States lawmakers has warned that advanced Nvidia chips exported to China are allegedly being used to boost Chinese military capabilities.

In a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), the Select Committee on China alleged that Nvidia's chips are “powering China's military” and called it a security failure on part of the US government.

The 23-member bipartisan committee has written to the Department of Commerce and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick alleging that "there's no such thing as ‘purely civilian’ artificial intelligence (AI) company in China.

“Nvidia's products were used by DeepSeek AI and ended up supporting an AI model used by the PLA (People's Liberation Army). Military-civil fusion is real, and we must protect our country’s technological advantage,” it added.

It alleged that Nvidia's “extensive technical support that enabled DeepSeek” has been integrated into PLA systems and has demonstrated cybersecurity risk.

“These findings demonstrate why rigorous enforcement of the Department’s H200 export rule, which requires certification that chips will not serve military purposes, is essential—even if such enforcement effectively prevents H200 exports to the PRC altogether,” it added.

The letter also alleged that DeepSeek routes Americans' data to the Chinese government “through infrastructure tied to a US-designated Chinese military company”. It used a Jamestown Foundation report from October 2025, which cited PLA procurement documents to conclude that the Chinese military was using homegrown AI systems including DeepSeek, and planned to integrate it across its operations.

It further called for measures to be taken “to prevent prohibited end users from gaining the type of access the PLA gained from DeepSeek”.

You can read the full letter in the post below:

A week later, multiple reports said that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's annual Shanghai visit would be dual purpose this year, and included detours to Beijing, Shenzhen and Taiwan.

Notably, the US President Donald Trump approved Nvidia's sale of the H200 AI processors in China in December 2025 following months of lobbying from the company, Jensen Huang, and the AI sector stakeholders.

However, parts makers of essential components are now concerned that it is the Chinese authorities who will block shipments and want to write-offs later down the line, the FT report added citing two sources.

Huang has been gung-ho about the Chinese market and had lobbied hard with Washington and Beijing to get his H200 chips approved for sale. After US approval in December, the company pumped up production for estimated over 1 million orders from Chinese clients, the source told FT.

The deliveries were planned for March, but now the fate remains suspended amid uncertainty from customs officials, the source added.

Chinese customs authorities reportedly told a logistics company in Shenzhen that Nvidia's H200 chips are not allowed into country. There was no reason given for the block, nor indication of whether this is a temporary step or permanent ban. FT's sources said that domestic technology companies have been warned against buying Nvidia chips and told to prioritise domestic options instead.