Jensen Huang and Nvidia Downplay AI Risks as China Chip Sales Gain Momentum

Most hardware experts and the people who design networking equipment and microchips share Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s view of artificial intelligence, according to Witt.

“They tend to have a very low risk awareness of this technology,” Witt said. “They just don’t realize it.”

He said the debate over AI risks has continued for the past 10 years, but “neither side has moved at all.” As Huang grows closer to President Donald Trump, the president is likely to continue downplaying warnings from major AI companies and avoid serious discussions with China about the risks posed by its models.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent acknowledged ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping that the president is “completely aligned with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.”

Nvidia downplays AI safety concerns

According to The Information, China’s decision to lift export restrictions on Nvidia’s gaming chips could give the company its best opportunity in more than a year to regain momentum in China’s AI market.

If China approves the sales, ByteDance plans to order 1 million chips. That order would represent two quarters of Nvidia’s expected revenue, according to the report.

The deal could improve Nvidia’s financial outlook in China. Delays in China’s approval of H200 sales contributed to weak results, with China accounting for less than 1 percent of Nvidia’s data center revenue in the most recent quarter.

Andrew Yun, a researcher at the AI safety nonprofit CivAI, told CNBC that Nvidia is viewed within the AI industry as “the most aggressive when it comes to just trying to make money.”

“At every turn, they work really hard to make sure that whatever happens is positive for NVIDIA’s bottom line,” Yun said.

Concerns over Nvidia chips being diverted to China

Some experts worry that too many Nvidia chips could be diverted to China if the United States and China continue loosening export regulations.

The concern is that U.S. data centers could lose valuable domestic chip supplies, weakening the hardware advantage that currently helps the country compete in frontier AI.