Nvidia’s Founder Visits Company Offices in China amidst Chip Restrictions Concerns

Nvidia Corp.’s co-founder, Jensen Huang, starts off the new year by visiting the company’s offices in China. This quiet trip comes at a time of growing concerns over the Chinese government’s potential bypassing of restrictions on the import of American chips.

Earlier this month, Huang visited Nvidia offices in Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Beijing, according to a source familiar with the matter. Videos and photos of the 60-year-old Huang dressed in traditional colorful attire and dancing with employees surfaced online over the weekend. It was unclear whether he had formal meetings with other executives or government representatives, said the source, who requested anonymity.

During this trip, which was first reported by Chinese state media based on posts on Chinese social media platforms, Huang visited Nvidia offices at a time when their AI integrated circuits have become crucial in the technological race between Washington and Beijing. Huang warned that the escalation of sanctions aimed at cutting off the supply of AI training chips could force Chinese companies to develop their own alternatives, which could potentially harm American tech leaders in the long run. Nvidia’s co-founder mentioned Huawei Technologies Co., which caused concern in Washington in 2023 by incorporating an advanced Chinese-made processor in a smartphone, as a potential competitor.

A representative from Nvidia confirmed that Huang celebrated the upcoming Chinese New Year with employees but did not disclose further details.
Currently, Nvidia, whose market value tripled in 2023 primarily due to its key role in AI development, is seeing another 20% growth this year as investors bet on its leading position in the industry. The company has developed versions of its integrated circuits tailored for the Chinese market, which it claims comply with successive rounds of US sanctions, a claim carefully scrutinized in Washington.

In one of the posts on social media, an Nvidia employee shared a photo of Huang presenting an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 graphics card to a randomly chosen person. According to the local newspaper EDN, the CEO’s further travels took place in Taiwan, marking his fourth visit in the past year.

Source: Bloomberg L.P.

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