AI-focused crypto tokens are seeing a dip as Nvidia, the top AI chipmaker fueling the space, could soon take a major financial hit due to new U.S. export restrictions.
In a filing on April 14, Nvidia said it expects around $5.5 billion in charges for the first quarter of fiscal year 2026 because of U.S. government rules limiting its AI chip sales to China.
On April 9, officials told Nvidia it now needs special export licenses for its popular H20 chips and others with similar capabilities. The new restrictions target China, Hong Kong, and Macau, with the government warning that the chips could end up powering Chinese supercomputers.
The H20 chip is the most advanced AI chip Nvidia is currently allowed to sell in China under the earlier rules. It’s reportedly been used by Chinese AI startup DeepSeek to train models, something that has raised concerns among U.S. lawmakers.
Even though Nvidia said it plans to spend hundreds of millions over the next four years making some AI chips in the U.S., that hasn’t stopped the stock from sliding after its latest filing and the expected hit to future revenues. NVDA dropped 6.3% in after-hours trading on April 15 to $105.10, and it’s down about 16.45% so far this year.
Nvidia’s decline mirrors a wider pullback in tech as Trump’s tariff escalation rattles investor confidence across the sector. Other prominent tech stocks were also in the red, with Apple down 0.20% from the previous close to $202.14, Microsoft off 0.56% at $385.73, Alphabet sliding 1.71% to $156.31, and Amazon dropping 1.33% to $179.59.
Adding to Nvidia’s troubles, a “death cross” has formed on the 1-day NVDA/USD chart, a bearish technical signal where its 50-day moving average drops below the 200-day one. The last time this happened was in April 2022, and Nvidia’s stock plunged nearly 50% in the following six months.
That’s got investors in AI crypto tokens on edge, as these tokens have often reacted to Nvidia-related news mostly due to the fact that Nvidia’s hardware plays a central role in powering the AI infrastructure that many of these projects rely on.
For instance, in December, reports of China launching an antitrust probe into Nvidia caused the AI crypto token market cap to drop by over 14% in a single day. In the past, a surge in the Nvidia stock price has also resulted in bullish rallies for AI tokens.
Following Nvidia’s latest filing, the total market cap of AI-related tokens has fallen 3.7% in the past 24 hours, now sitting at around $20.1 billion. Trading volume also declined, signaling weaker demand.
Near Protocol (NEAR), the biggest AI crypto by market cap, slid 5.3% over the past day. Other major tokens like Internet Computer (ICP), Render (RENDER), Sei (SEI), Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL), and Akash Network (AKT) also lost between 5% and 12%.
