Chinese technology giants ByteDance, Alibaba and Tencent have reportedly placed orders for more than 3 million Nvidia RTX PRO 5500 graphics cards, with a combined list price exceeding $35 billion, according to a Reuters report published on October 20, 2026.

The orders highlight the continuing demand for Nvidia hardware among Chinese technology companies as they expand their artificial intelligence capabilities despite restrictions on exports of advanced U.S. chips to China.

However, the orders may significantly exceed Nvidia’s ability to supply the requested quantities.

Why Chinese technology companies want Nvidia chips

The RTX PRO 5500 is a professional workstation graphics card rather than one of Nvidia’s most advanced data-centre processors. Nevertheless, it is among the more capable Nvidia products available to Chinese buyers under current U.S. export restrictions.

Companies including ByteDance, Alibaba and Tencent are seeking computing resources to support AI services, including the processing stage known as inference. Inference is the process through which a trained AI model generates responses, produces content or completes tasks.

The continued demand suggests that Chinese companies are looking for ways to expand their AI computing capacity even when access to the most powerful processors is restricted.

Reuters reported that the three companies’ combined orders exceed 3 million cards, priced at approximately $11,400 each. The reported total value is more than $35 billion.

U.S. export restrictions are shaping chip demand

Washington has restricted exports of some of Nvidia’s most advanced AI processors to China.

The Blackwell-based B300 data-centre chip is barred from sale to Chinese buyers under the restrictions described in the Reuters report, while exports of the Hopper-based H200 are subject to case-by-case review and licensing conditions.

These limitations have encouraged Chinese companies to seek alternative hardware that can still be supplied legally.

The situation also illustrates a challenge for Nvidia: demand from China remains substantial, but export rules and the availability of eligible products affect which sales the company can make.

Nvidia may struggle to fulfil the orders

The scale of the reported orders creates a major supply challenge.

According to sources cited by Reuters, Nvidia has told customers and partners it cannot guarantee that it can fulfil the requests. One source said customers might receive only 5% to 10% of the quantities ordered.

The report also indicated that Nvidia could produce no more than 3 million RTX PRO 5500 cards globally in 2027, while total orders from Chinese customers had exceeded 6 million units.

That means the $35 billion figure represents the potential list value of reported orders, not confirmed revenue or completed deliveries.

What this means for the AI industry

The orders underline how central computing hardware has become to the global AI race. Companies need substantial processing capacity to develop, deploy and operate AI products, creating demand for chips even when access to advanced models of hardware is limited.

For Nvidia, the reported demand demonstrates continued interest in its products in China, but the extent to which that interest translates into sales depends on production capacity and export restrictions.

For Chinese technology companies, the challenge is obtaining enough computing power to support their AI ambitions while navigating supply constraints and government policies.

The developments also raise questions about how long Chinese firms will rely on foreign chip suppliers, given China's parallel efforts to strengthen its domestic semiconductor industry.

More than $35 billion in reported orders signals substantial demand for Nvidia hardware, but the amount of that demand the company can actually fulfil remains uncertain.