Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang met with US officials as scrutiny intensifies over China chip-access policies and license enforcement.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is in Washington this week meeting with US officials and lawmakers as scrutiny intensifies over export-controlled chips allegedly reaching Chinese AI developers. According to Axios, Huang met with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Tuesday, though neither the Commerce Department nor Nvidia confirmed the meeting or disclosed its purpose. An Nvidia spokesperson stated that Huang was in DC "to meet with leaders on both sides of the aisle to discuss Nvidia's work to strengthen the country's supply chain by producing $500 billion in American technology over four years and American leadership in AI, including leading in open source."
The timing reflects heightened tensions over chip access. Trump administration officials last week accused Beijing-based startup Moonshot AI of using export-controlled Nvidia processors in Thailand to train its latest model, Kimi K3, which analysts say has narrowed the AI capability gap between the US and China. The US Bureau of Industry and Security announced it was investigating these allegations. This week, The Information reported that Moonshot is now seeking access to Nvidia's advanced Blackwell chips to develop its next flagship model, Kimi K4; both companies declined to comment.
The visit also unfolds amid a separate policy debate over whether the US should restrict Chinese open-weight models. Nvidia has become a vocal opponent of such restrictions, arguing that open development is essential to American AI leadership. The company has coordinated industry support through a public letter opposing an open-weight model ban and by establishing the Open Secure AI Alliance, a new industry coalition focused on AI safety collaboration.
The contrast with US competitors is stark. Kimi K3's open-weight nature—allowing developers to download and modify the model—contrasts sharply with the proprietary approaches of OpenAI and Anthropic. During a podcast appearance Tuesday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reaffirmed his company's commitment to open-weight models, claiming OpenAI's are superior to Kimi K3. He downplayed competitive threats from cheaper Chinese alternatives, stating that OpenAI's large user base ensures profitability even at modest margins. "This is not in, like, my top 10 list of worries," he said.
The Trump administration is expected to announce a new regulatory framework for advanced AI systems this week. Meanwhile, a broader coalition has emerged: over 1,000 employees from Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic issued a joint statement calling on Washington to develop "the technical and governance tools to deliberately pace the frontier of automated AI development."