Jensen Huang’s Trump Dinner Invite Puts Nvidia at the Heart of US-China AI Talks
Jensen Huang’s Trump Dinner Invite Puts Nvidia at the Heart of US-China AI Talks
Days before Chinese President Xi Jinping is due in Washington, Jensen Huang’s place at the center of the AI conversation was already becoming conspicuous. At the All-In Summit, a repost shared by David Sacks advertised Huang’s appearance alongside a “legendary phone call” from President Donald Trump — a public display of access before diplomacy moved to the dinner table.
A second Sacks repost captured Trump’s broader stance on warnings over advanced AI. Trump called AI “doomerism” a “hoax” and said, “we’re not going to let that happen,” a message that aligned him publicly with Huang as both men pushed back on alarm over rapid AI development.
Now Huang is expected to attend Trump’s state dinner for Xi next week, according to a person familiar with the private guest list. CNBC reported that AI will be a principal subject when the two presidents meet; Huang was also among the select CEOs who travelled to China with Trump earlier this year. The White House framed the invitations in transactional terms: Trump had invited “several great American business leaders” because he would “always prioritize making good deals for our country.”
That account presents Huang as a useful industry figure in a strategically charged meeting over technology and trade. But it has also sharpened a more suspicious reading of the relationship. The Verge noted that Huang had recently taken Trump’s calls, including putting the president on speakerphone at a conference, and suggested the Nvidia chief may be increasingly concerned about prospective AI and data-center regulation.
The two interpretations are not mutually exclusive. Huang’s expected attendance can be read as recognition that Nvidia’s chips sit near the core of US-China AI competition — and as evidence that the company’s chief is working to stay close to the officials who may determine the rules governing that competition.
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