Don't Worry About the Vase Podcast Selling H200s to China Is Unwise and Unpopular
Dec 9, 2025
This discussion dives into the implications of selling H200 chips to China, arguing it's detrimental to U.S. interests. The host critiques an announcement endorsing these exports, emphasizing the AI and compute arms race's importance to national security. Expert opinions highlight the performance advantage of H200s over older chips, reinforcing fears that such sales would aid China's tech ambitions. The debate also uncovers flaws in pro-export arguments and outlines potential market impacts. It's a compelling exploration of tech ethics and strategic costs.
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H200 Exports Are Strategically Dangerous
- Zvi Moshowitz argues selling NVIDIA H200 chips to China is both strategically unwise and politically unpopular.
- He warns this would give China a major compute advantage and harm U.S. national security and AI leadership.
Limit Or Block H200 Shipments
- Do not sell large quantities of H200 chips to China and, if sales proceed, strictly limit quantities and conditions.
- Ensure future chips are not given away on similar delays and attach strong national-security conditions to any exports.
H200 Widely Outperforms Prior Chips
- The H200 is roughly six times more powerful than the H20 and outperforms anything China can make until around 2028.
- Exporting it would erode America's compute lead and accelerate Chinese model development.