Nvidia CEO Points to 22% Rental Rate Jump as Proof Older Chips Still Earn Money

According to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, rising rental prices for AI chips show that older hardware continues to generate revenue. This comes after the cost to rent a three-year-old chip increased 22% over the past month.

The chip in question is the H100, a training processor that powered the initial generative AI boom. Its current hourly rental rate is $3.28. Huang describes this as evidence of durability. However, a longer-term view makes the argument less straightforward.

AI Chip Rental Prices for Older Models Climb 22% in a Month

Data circulated on social media platform X puts the hourly rate at $3.28, an increase of about 22% from one month earlier. Huang posted the chart and described Nvidia compute as fungible, durable, and revenue-generating.

NVIDIA compute is fungible, durable and highly rentable. It is a productive, revenue-generating asset. https://t.co/cvmjaNoiK8

— Jensen Huang (@JensenHuang) September 8, 2026

The price rebound goes against typical accounting practices. Large cloud providers depreciate GPUs over about five to six years. Investor Michael Burry contends the actual useful life is shorter, and he expanded his Nvidia short in late August.

One Month's Data Not Enough to End Depreciation Debate

Historical data offers mixed signals. The same chip previously rented for $7 to $8 per hour at major cloud platforms, with even higher initial rates. Compared to that, $3.28 is still a significant discount.

Supply dynamics also account for some of the increase. The latest Blackwell systems are allocated to the largest customers, meaning older clusters continue to handle inference tasks. Constraints on power and memory keep overall market prices high.

Also relevant is the identity of the renters. CoreWeave, a cloud company that purchases Nvidia chips and leases them, had $35 billion in debt as of June 30. In turn, Nvidia committed to renting back idle capacity from these partners. Critics view this as one of the off-balance-sheet AI deals that inflate demand.

In August, Nvidia reported a record second-quarter revenue of $96.2 billion, and its shares climbed over 4% following the earnings release. The rental rates for older chips provide Huang with a new argument. If the gains continue for another month, that argument could become a trend.