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1 / 3Nvidia tells cloud partners to sell at least 51% of their capacity to non-Chinese customers×

The rule

Nvidia has told the cloud companies that rent out its chips that at least 51% of their services must go to companies that are not Chinese, the Financial Times reported on Monday, citing five people familiar with the matter. The rule applies to new contracts only, was passed on verbally by its sales force and regional teams rather than in writing, and is the first restriction of its kind Nvidia has imposed.

The route it reaches

It reaches the route Washington has spent years trying to close: Chinese developers renting compute in data centers outside China, from providers in Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and elsewhere.

The response

Nvidia neither confirmed nor denied the report to AFP, and said in a statement that "America cannot win the AI race unless America's AI infrastructure wins worldwide." China's foreign ministry said it was not aware of it. A 49% ceiling is a sales policy rather than a law, which means a neocloud with a Chinese majority loses its supplier, not its license.

Sources and the full story

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Nvidia tells cloud partners to sell at least 51% of their capacity to non-Chinese customers

Nvidia has told the cloud companies that rent out its chips that at least 51% of their services must go to companies that are not Chinese, the Financial Times reported on Monday, citing five people familiar with the matter. The rule applies to new contracts only, was passed on verbally by its sales force and regional teams rather than in writing, and is the first restriction of its kind Nvidia has imposed. It reaches the route Washington has spent years trying to close: Chinese developers renting compute in data centers outside China, from providers in Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and elsewhere.

Nvidia neither confirmed nor denied the report to AFP, and said in a statement that "America cannot win the AI race unless America's AI infrastructure wins worldwide." China's foreign ministry said it was not aware of it. A 49% ceiling is a sales policy rather than a law, which means a neocloud with a Chinese majority loses its supplier, not its license. SourcesBB

Sources

• BNvidia tells cloud clients to limit Chinese business (Financial Times, not opened)ft.com
• BNvidia tells cloud partners to cap China business at 49%, FT reports (TNW)thenextweb.com

This story ran in the Morning Brief of November 3rd 2026.