Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, recently discussed the implications of U.S. export restrictions on semiconductor technologies during an interview with CNBC at the Viva Technology conference in Paris. Huang reiterated that the U.S. must lead as the backbone of global development of artificial intelligence (AI). This is even more important amid the growing threat of competition from China’s Huawei.
And in many ways, Huang said, it’s his job to explain what’s going on with Nvidia’s technology and the dynamics in their industry to the Trump administration. He noted that AI developers everywhere should be using the American technology stack. He called on them to stop relying on Chinese platforms. A fiery trade war between the U.S. and China is further complicating things for firms such as Nvidia. Export restrictions are compounding the challenges they are facing.
The United States has exaggerated Huawei’s achievements. Huawei is not that great. We have to run at full strength to live up to their appraisal,” declared Ren Zhengfei, founder of Huawei. He noted the fierce rivalry among the two tech titans.
Huang cautioned that with that step, the U.S. would be inadvertently making Huawei’s position stronger in China’s home market. He warned that continued limits on AI semiconductors for Chinese companies may have this inadvertent effect. He noted that Beijing is grooming Huawei to establish its own AI chip ecosystem. This would increase the global competitiveness of Chinese tech and smother American innovation.
If the United States chooses to disengage from China, Huawei is happy to fill the void. Now Huawei can help China, but more importantly, they can help everybody else in the field. Huang continued, warning that if America doesn’t engage, there are major benefits to Chinese companies to be had.
As the Nvidia CEO warned, cutting the US off from half of the world’s AI researchers—including those in China—is a terrible idea. This upending strategy would gut their essential weapon to retain hegemony in international tech markets. As long as all the AI developers are based in China, you know, I really think [the] China stack is going to win. And so we just have to be careful on short-term actions that may have long-term, unintended consequences,” he said.
Huang’s remarks come as trade tensions continue to increase. China has blamed the U.S. for derailing trade negotiations following yesterday’s warning to cease using Chinese chips, which was aimed directly at Huawei. The White House has responded by stating it would “aggressively revoke visas of Chinese students,” particularly those studying in critical technology fields.
Huang asserted that Nvidia’s technology is “a generation ahead of theirs,” referring to Huawei’s capabilities. Yet, he admitted that nobody does it better than President Trump when it comes to treading these shark-infested waters. He cautioned that overreaches could put America’s long-term technological supremacy at risk.