Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) is scrambling to meet a surge in demand for its high-end H200 artificial intelligence chips from Chinese technology companies, approaching its primary manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM) to significantly ramp up production capacity.
Chinese tech leaders have placed orders for more than 2 million H200 chips for delivery in 2026, according to people familiar with the matter.
The request far outstrips Nvidia’s current available stock of approximately 700,000 units, two of the people said.
While the exact scale of the additional volume Nvidia seeks from TSMC remains under wraps, a third source indicated that Nvidia has requested the chipmaker begin work in the second quarter of 2026.
The rush to expand H200 production comes at a delicate time for the Santa Clara-based company, which has spent the last year shifting its focus toward its next-generation Blackwell and upcoming Rubin architectures.
By returning to the Hopper-based H200, which uses TSMC’s 4-nanometer process, Nvidia must now balance a resurgence in Chinese demand against the needs of U.S. and global customers for its newest hardware.