Nvidia and AMD Lobby White House to Loosen AI Chip Export Controls
Nvidia and AMD have significantly increased their lobbying efforts at the White House to influence export control policies for AI chips. The companies are seeking changes to the framework that determines which chips can be sold to China.
Nvidia's spending on lobbying has skyrocketed, reaching $3.5 million in the first three quarters of 2025 alone, up from $640,000 spent in all of 2024. This represents a fivefold increase in their lobbying efforts.
The companies are pushing for case-by-case export licenses rather than blanket bans on certain chips like Nvidia's H20 and H200, as well as AMD's MI308 and MI325X. Nvidia has even agreed to share up to 25% of its China sales revenue with the US government for specific shipments of the H200.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has personally lobbied the Trump administration, including meetings with President Trump, positioning himself as a bridge between the chip industry and AI policy. By September 2026, Huang had become one of Trump's most influential advisors on AI policy.