Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told the Financial Times that China is on track to win the artificial intelligence (AI) race, before issuing a more cautious statement shortly after.
In an interview on the sidelines of the FT Future of AI Summit, Huang stressed that China has the advantage of lower energy costs and looser regulations, warning that the US risks losing ground in AI technology.
Hours after the report was published, Nvidia issued a new statement on its official X account, with Huang explaining that China is just nanoseconds behind the US in AI and stressing the importance of the US continuing to lead through global innovation and development.
Huang had previously stressed that the US could maintain its lead in AI if developers continued to rely on Nvidia’s AI chips.
That effort appeared to bear fruit after Huang met with US President Donald Trump in July, when Washington agreed to ease some restrictions on chip sales to China.
However, Beijing responded by suspending Nvidia’s access to the local market through a national security review, causing the company’s market share in China to fall to zero.
So far, it is unclear whether China will allow Nvidia chips to be sold again, with authorities seen as more likely to support local AI chip makers.
Industry observers say the move could be used by Beijing as pressure in trade talks with Washington or as an incentive to bolster its domestic semiconductor industry.
