Nvidia CEO 'Disappointed' as China Reportedly Bans AI Chips Amid Ongoing US-China Tech Tensions

Nvidia CEO says he's 'disappointed' after report China has banned its AI chips

LONDON -- Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has weighed in on the chipmaker's struggles in China after a report claimed the country has banned its AI semiconductors. He said he was "disappointed" after the Financial Times on Wednesday reported that the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) had ordered companies -- including TikTok parent company ByteDance and Alibaba -- not to buy Nvidia AI chips, including its less powerful H20 chip. In response to a question on the FT report, Huang said Wednesday that "we can only be in service of a market if the country wants us to be." "We probably contributed more to the China market than most countries have. And I'm disappointed with what I see," Huang said. "But they have larger agendas to work out between China and the United States, and I'm understanding of that." It comes after a tumultuous few years for Nvidia's business in China, which Huang described as "a bit of a rollercoaster." "We've guided all financial analysts not to include China" in financial forecasts, Huang told reporters Wednesday at a press briefing in London. "The reason for that is because that's largely going to be within the discussions of the United States government and Chinese government." Previously, the U.S. had imposed restrictions on exports of Nvidia's AI chips to China -- including a less powerful server chip called the H20 -- over national security concerns. However, in August, the White House announced that President Donald Trump and Huang had struck a deal under which Nvidia would receive export licenses in exchange for 15% of Chinese sales of the H20 going to the U.S. government. The latest report would represent another blow to Nvidia's China business. It comes after China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) earlier this week opened an anti-monopoly investigation into Nvidia over its acquisition of Mellanox, an Israeli technology company that creates network solutions for data centers and servers. Huang is accompanying U.S. President Donald Trump on his state visit to the U.K. this week. On Tuesday, Nvidia announced £11 billion ($15 billion) of investment into U.K. AI infrastructure. And it was not alone -- a slew of other U.S. tech giants, including Microsoft, Google and Salesforce, have also announced multibillion-dollar AI investments in the country. Regardless of the current geopolitical situation, Huang stressed the importance of China's AI sector. "The Chinese market is important. It's large. The technology industry is vibrant. We've been in service of it for 30 years," the Nvidia boss said. He added that Nvidia would "continue to be supportive of the Chinese government and Chinese companies as they wish, and we're of course going to continue to support the U.S. government as they all sort through these geopolitical policies."

Nvidia CEO Huang says he's disappointed by China chip curbs

LONDON (AP) -- The CEO of Nvidia, which faces tight restrictions on selling its chips to China amid the U.S.-China battle over trade and tech, said he's disappointed about the situation. Jensen Huang said he expects to discuss the issue with President Donald Trump at a state banquet hosted by the British government that they'll be attending on Wednesday night. Santa Clara, California-based Nvidia, the world's most valuable company, is restricted from exporting its most advanced chips, which are in demand for developing artificial intelligence, to China. This week, Beijing regulators also targeted the company, accusing it of antitrust breaches stemming from a 2020 acquisition of an Israeli tech company. Adding to the problems, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that China's internet regulator is banning domestic tech companies from buying an Nvidia chip model tailored for the local market. Asked about the report at a media briefing in London, Jensen Huang said he didn't have a reaction, but added, "I think that we could only be in service of a market if the country wants us to be." China is the world's second biggest AI computing market and Nvidia has contributed more than most companies, he said. "I'm disappointed with what I see, but they have larger agendas to work out, you know, between China and the United States, and I'm understanding of that, and we're patient about it," he said. Huang said the company will continue to be "supportive" of both governments as they "sort through these geopolitical policies", adding there's "not very much anxiety there." Huang said he hasn't yet spoken to Trump about the latest developments, "but I'll see him tonight, and he'll probably ask me. I'll probably say something similar." The CEO is visiting London at same time as Trump to unveil a flurry of new investments that coincide with the president's visit, including a deal to supply tens of thousands of its processor chips for data centers that will be part of the U.K. arm of Stargate, a Trump-backed AI infrastructure project led by OpenAI.

Nvidia boss 'disappointed' by China chip ban

Nvidia - the world's leading chipmaker - had previously been banned from selling its most advanced chips to China, before Trump reversed the ban in July. Nvidia has to pay 15% of its Chinese revenues to the US government in an unprecedented deal struck in the summer. On Wednesday morning, the Financial Times reported that China's Cyberspace Administration had told tech companies to stop using Nvidia chips which had specifically been manufactured for the Chinese market. Shares of the US company were down more than 1% in premarket trading. Mr Huang said he would "support the US" as they try to resolve geopolitical issues, and would tell the same thing to Trump if he is asked about it on Wednesday evening. The UK is hosting Trump at a state banquet, where tech bosses are also expected to attend. Nvidia became the first company in the world to pass a $4tn (£2.9tn) valuation earlier in 2025. It has become central to the AI boom, with its computer chips powering data centres around the world. But China wants to rival the US's global dominance in the AI space, and has been developing its own chips as part of its AI strategy. Large tech companies such as DeepSeek, Tencent and Alibaba had been among the Chinese companies which had ordered Nvidia chips before the order to stop buying them. Nvidia was one of many US tech companies to announce investments into the UK as a tech pact between the two companies was signed. This includes supplying chips to the Stargate UK data centre which will open in north-east England, in collaboration with OpenAI, Arm and NScale.

Nvidia CEO Huang says he's disappointed by China chip curbs

LONDON -- The CEO of Nvidia, which faces tight restrictions on selling its chips to China amid the U.S.-China battle over trade and tech, said he's disappointed about the situation. Jensen Huang said he expects to discuss the issue with President Donald Trump at a state banquet hosted by the British government that they'll be attending on Wednesday night. Santa Clara, California-based Nvidia, the world's most valuable company, is restricted from exporting its most advanced chips, which are in demand for developing artificial intelligence, to China. This week, Beijing regulators also targeted the company, accusing it of antitrust breaches stemming from a 2020 acquisition of an Israeli tech company. Adding to the problems, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that China's internet regulator is banning domestic tech companies from buying an Nvidia chip model tailored for the local market. Asked about the report at a media briefing in London, Jensen Huang said he didn't have a reaction, but added, "I think that we could only be in service of a market if the country wants us to be." China is the world's second biggest AI computing market and Nvidia has contributed more than most companies, he said. "I'm disappointed with what I see, but they have larger agendas to work out, you know, between China and the United States, and I'm understanding of that, and we're patient about it," he said. Huang said the company will continue to be "supportive" of both governments as they "sort through these geopolitical policies", adding there's "not very much anxiety there." Huang said he hasn't yet spoken to Trump about the latest developments, "but I'll see him tonight, and he'll probably ask me. I'll probably say something similar." The CEO is visiting London at same time as Trump to unveil a flurry of new investments that coincide with the president's visit, including a deal to supply tens of thousands of its processor chips for data centers that will be part of the U.K. arm of Stargate, a Trump-backed AI infrastructure project led by OpenAI.

Nvidia CEO Huang says he's disappointed by China chip curbs

LONDON -- The CEO of Nvidia, which faces tight restrictions on selling its chips to China amid the U.S.-China battle over trade and tech, said he's disappointed about the situation. Jensen Huang said he expects to discuss the issue with U.S. President Donald Trump at a state banquet hosted by the British government that they'll be attending on Wednesday night. Santa Clara, Calif.-based Nvidia, the world's most valuable company, is restricted from exporting its most advanced chips, which are in demand for developing artificial intelligence, to China. This week, Beijing regulators also targeted the company, accusing it of antitrust breaches stemming from a 2020 acquisition of an Israeli tech company. Adding to the problems, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that China's internet regulator is banning domestic tech companies from buying an Nvidia chip model tailored for the local market. Asked about the report at a media briefing in London, Jensen Huang said he didn't have a reaction, but added, "I think that we could only be in service of a market if the country wants us to be." China is the world's second biggest AI computing market and Nvidia has contributed more than most companies, he said. "I'm disappointed with what I see, but they have larger agendas to work out, you know, between China and the United States, and I'm understanding of that, and we're patient about it," he said. Huang said the company will continue to be "supportive" of both governments as they "sort through these geopolitical policies", adding there's "not very much anxiety there." Huang said he hasn't yet spoken to Trump about the latest developments, "but I'll see him tonight, and he'll probably ask me. I'll probably say something similar." The CEO is visiting London at same time as Trump to unveil a flurry of new investments that coincide with the president's visit, including a deal to supply tens of thousands of its processor chips for data centers that will be part of the U.K. arm of Stargate, a Trump-backed AI infrastructure project led by OpenAI.