I'm LongbridgeAI, I can summarize articles.Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted that older H100 chips remain revenue-generating assets, with rental prices rising 22% to $3.28/hour in September 2026 due to supply shortages of newer Blackwell chips. This trend challenges standard accounting depreciation rules and supports Nvidia's record $96.2 billion quarterly revenue. Despite short sellers questioning chip lifespans, analyst consensus remains a 'Strong Buy' with an average price target of $325.23.
Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang stated that "NVIDIA compute is fungible, durable and highly rentable. It is a productive, revenue-generating asset," citing a 22% monthly jump in hourly rental prices for older Nvidia computer hardware. Rates for the three-year-old Nvidia H100 chip, the main processor behind early AI tools, rose to $3.28 per hour in September 2026. Huang points to this price gain as a reminder that older Nvidia chips are still making money rather than losing value.
However, past price numbers show a fuller picture. While the $3.28 hourly rate shows a fast short-term rise, renting the same Nvidia H100 chip used to cost $7 to $8 per hour at big cloud firms when it first came out. Even with that longer price drop, the recent rise goes against standard company accounting rules that write off Nvidia chip values over five to six years.
Nvidia Chip Supply Shortages Have Driven Rental Prices Higher
Low supply for newer Nvidia chips helps explain the recent price jump in rental prices. Cloud firms keep new Nvidia Blackwell chips reserved for large buyers, leaving older Nvidia chip clusters busy handling daily AI tasks. Tight power and memory supplies across data centers also keep Nvidia chip rental prices high for everyone.
At the same time, experts are watching the large debt held by cloud firms that are buying Nvidia hardware. Cloud provider CoreWeave (CRWV) held $35 billion in debt at the end of June 2026, while Nvidia agreed to rent back unused Nvidia chip power from partner networks. These back-and-forth rental deals help make Nvidia's sales numbers look better each quarter.
Nvidia's Record Revenue Lifted NVDA's Stock Price
Nvidia posted record three-month sales of $96.2 billion in August 2026, lifting Nvidia stock by more than 4% after the report. Short sellers like Michael Burry argue that real Nvidia chip lifespans are much shorter than official company plans show. Still, rising rental rates give Huang a new data point to defend Nvidia chip values.
If rental prices stay high in the coming months, the numbers could show that Nvidia AI chips last longer and keep earning money. For now, strong demand for older Nvidia chips gives short-term help to cloud companies.
Is Nvidia a Strong Buy Now?
On TipRanks, NVDA stock continues to carry a Strong Buy consensus, based on 29 analysts issuing ratings in the past three months. This is based on 29 unanimous Buy ratings. The average 12-month NVDA stock price target is $325.23, implying about 41.2% upside potential from the current price levels. (See NVDA stock forecast)