Democrats warn Trump greenlighting Nvidia AI chip sales could boost China's military edge

"The President directing you to approve licenses of the H200 falls within a deeply concerning pattern that undercuts our nation's security," the pair of Democrats wrote.

Meeks said the basis of his request is found in the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA), the 2018 law governing the federal government authority over technology-related exports. The ECRA states that the Department of Commerce must supply Congress with answers to concerns raised by the ranking member of the foreign affairs and armed services committees. 

"In ECRA, Congress stated the policy of the United States is 'to restrict the export of items which would make a significant contribution to the military potential of any other country,'" Meeks wrote.

"Approving licenses for items like NVIDIA's H200 chips, which the Justice Department recently described as 'integral to modern military applications,' would be deeply at odds with the policy that Congress articulated in ECRA."

The H200 chip, one of the world's most advanced computational devices, is NVIDIA's crème of the crop. It plays a key role in the processing needed for increasingly sophisticated AI. 

The company was first ordered to halt sales to China in 2022 under the Biden administration. 

Like Meeks, several lawmakers worry that allowing their sale to China will only further empower an adversary that has had no qualms weaponizing technology. In recent years, Congress has banned the use of Chinese-made Huawei devices for government employees and, last year, passed a law forcing the divestment of TikTok, fearing China's far-reaching insight through the data collected by the popular social media app.

To Meeks, the decision to resume sales of the H200 chip - to China and to other potential rivals - seems incongruent with that past wariness.

"Just last month, you approved the export of tens of thousands of advanced AI chips, worth an estimated $1 billion, to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, despite significant concerns about these countries' human rights records and their close relationships with the [People's Republic of China]," Meeks wrote.

Meeks and Warren have requested answers from the administration about what factors led to the decision by Jan. 12, 2026.