Jensen Huang says the company has pulled out of China entirely and urges Washington to reconsider its policy approach.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang criticized US export restrictions on China while expressing hope for future policy changes, arguing that policies meant to limit Chinese technological advancement could ultimately undermine American interests.
"What harms China could oftentimes also harm America, and even worse,"
Huang said earlier this month at a Citadel Securities conference in New York, which appeared this week on Citadel's YouTube channel. He called for a more nuanced approach to the controls, highlighting that China represents "the second largest computer market in the world" and hosts about half of the world's AI researchers who he believes should be building AI on US technology.
"I think it's a mistake for the United States to not participate and so hopefully, we'll continue to explain and inform and hold out hope for a change in policy,"
the CEO added.
For Nvidia, the impact of US policies has been severe. Huang revealed that these restrictions have dealt a blow to the chipmaker's presence in China.
"At the moment, we are a hundred percent out of China,"
he said, adding that the company went "from 95 percent market share to zero percent."
While Huang didn't specify which product lines he was referring to, the context of the discussion focused on advanced AI chips and computing technology. In fiscal 2024, Nvidia posted Chinese revenue of $10.3 billion, or 17 percent of its $60.9 billion worldwide sales, according to company data.
Huang said Nvidia's financial projections have been adjusted to reflect this reality.
"If there are any shareholders out there, all of our forecast, we're assuming zero for China,"
he said, noting that any changes there would be considered "a bonus."
In August, Nvidia excluded H20 chip sales to China from its third-quarter revenue outlook.
The CEO's comments highlight escalating tensions between Washington's efforts to curb China's access to high-end chips and the business interests of US chipmakers. Due to US restrictions, Nvidia has created lower-performing AI chips for the Chinese market, including the H20, although tightening requirements have limited what the company can sell there.
Meanwhile, Beijing has intensified its scrutiny of H20 chips, citing concerns over potential vulnerabilities, including "loopholes and backdoor" risks. Last month, China's State Administration for Market Regulation said a preliminary probe indicates Nvidia violated the country's antitrust law and the regulator’s decision to conditionally approve its purchase of Israeli chipmaker Mellanox, subjecting Nvidia to further investigation.
In the latest tit-for-tat exchange, China announced further rare-earth export controls and other measures in retaliation for US trade policies such as its expanded enforcement of the Entity List, prompting President Donald Trump to declare an additional 100 percent tariffs on Chinese goods from Nov. 1.
Source: MLex
