Classification of this article: REPORT, not an official confirmation. According to a Financial Times report published on November 3 and carried by AFP and Reuters, Nvidia has reportedly told data-center and cloud partners worldwide to ensure that at least 51% of services under new contracts go to companies outside China — which would cap Chinese customers at no more than 49%.
The reported scope is narrow: the guidance would apply only to future contracts and would not change existing agreements. Also according to the Financial Times, based on five people familiar with the matter, the guidance was reportedly passed on verbally by Nvidia's sales and regional teams over recent months, without being put in writing.
What Nvidia said — and did not say
Nvidia neither confirmed nor denied the report when asked by AFP. In a statement, the company said data centers and clouds built on American chips are the foundation US model and application makers need to compete worldwide — without mentioning the 51% figure or China directly. Another report, from The Information and cited by other outlets, describes the guidance as not currently mandatory or strictly enforced, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the Financial Times details.
Open points prevent treating the rule as settled: it is unclear how the 51% would be measured — by revenue, compute hours or customer count —, how Nvidia would audit it, or how Chinese-owned subsidiaries abroad and resellers would be counted. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said she was not aware of the report.
Context and next milestone
The context helps explain why the topic matters: according to IDC, cited by TheStreet, Nvidia's share of China's data-center AI chip market fell to 34% in the first half of 2026, while Huawei gained ground. A verifiable milestone ahead is Nvidia's earnings call, scheduled for November 17, when the company may be asked about the matter.
Image credit: Nvidia logo, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fontes
- Business News Malaysia — Nvidia Asks Cloud Partners to Cap China Business at 49%
- Ad-hoc News — Nvidia Ties Cloud Expansion to a 51% Non-China Rule for Future Contracts
- AI Stock Wire — Nvidia (NVDA) 51% rule for cloud providers, explained
- VKTR — Nvidia Tells Cloud Partners to Cap Chinese Business at 49%, Report Says
Transparency: this article was prepared with the help of artificial intelligence, based on public sources on the internet and public posts on X, when cited by the sources. The information was checked against the cited sources; consult the original sources to confirm the details.
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