Africa-Press – Lesotho. Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, criticized the US’ artificial intelligence chip restrictions on China as “a failure” which drove Chinese firms to develop their own, the Financial Times reported Wednesday.
“Four years ago, Nvidia had 95% market share in China. Today, it is only 50 per cent,” Huang said at a tech conference in Taiwan. “The rest is Chinese technology. They have a lot of local technology they would use if they didn’t have Nvidia.”
“Chinese AI (artificial intelligence) researchers will use their own chips. They will use the second best. Local companies are very determined, and export controls gave them the spirit, and government support accelerated their development. Our competition is intense in China,” he added.
The AI diffusion regulation from former US President Joe Biden, which was scheduled to take effect May 15, and establish a three-tier licensing structure for AI chips used in data centers, was also criticized.
“The fundamental assumptions that led to the AI diffusion rule in the beginning have proven to be fundamentally flawed,” he said. “If the US wants to stay ahead, we need to maximize and accelerate our diffusion, not limit it.”
Huang praised US President Donald Trump for reversing the policy regarding chip restrictions. His remarks followed the announcement of the US and United Arab Emirates’ plan last week to build the largest AI campus outside of the US, which will be sourced by Nvidia’s chips.
The US has been restricting advanced AI chips’ exports to China to cripple that nation’s ability to reach advanced technologies.
The latest move came April 15, when the US banned Nvidia from exporting its H20 chips to China for the “indefinite future.” Nvidia said the ban would cost the company $5.5 billion in the first fiscal quarter.
Nvidia repeatedly criticized the restrictions, especially the Biden-era AI diffusion rule.
The “unprecedented and misguided” rules would jeopardize US leadership in AI technologies, a Nvidia statement said Jan. 13, after the rule was announced.
But the Trump administration signaled a change of course earlier this month. Washington reportedly intends to lift the Biden-era ban as part of an initiative to update semiconductor trade regulations that have faced fierce resistance from tech companies and foreign governments.
Last week, the US cautioned businesses against utilizing Chinese AI silicon, such as Huawei’s Ascend processors, to stop the worldwide spread of Chinese AI technology. The Chinese Commerce Ministry denounced the action on Monday, saying the US should “immediately correct its wrongdoings” and cease “discriminatory” tactics.
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