Nvidia CEO Slams US Chip Policy as a “Failure” Amid Backlash and Market Losses.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has sharply criticized U.S. export restrictions on advanced computing chips to China, calling the policies a “failure” that have damaged American companies more than their intended targets. Speaking at the Computex conference in Taipei, Huang argued that the rules—first enacted under Donald Trump and later intensified during Joe Biden’s presidency—have not only hurt U.S. chipmakers, but also accelerated China’s domestic semiconductor development.
"The fundamental assumptions that led to the AI diffusion rule in the beginning, in the first place, have been proven to be fundamentally flawed," Huang said at the press conference.
His comments follow a recent policy shift, with the Trump administration announcing it would scrap Biden-era export bans and instead implement a new framework. At the same time, it has expanded restrictions to dozens of additional countries and companies, mainly in China, further tightening the grip on tech exports.
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The original controls were justified on national security grounds, aiming to prevent cutting-edge technology with potential military applications from reaching firms linked to the Chinese government. However, Huang said the result has been a steep decline in Nvidia's market share in China—from 95% to 50% during Biden’s tenure—while also driving Chinese companies to build their own alternatives.
These remarks highlight the ongoing challenge the U.S. faces in balancing geopolitical strategy with economic reality. While security concerns remain legitimate, critics argue that the current approach is self-defeating.
A Failed Strategy
The U.S. government’s semiconductor tariffs and export bans were designed to cripple Chinese tech growth—but they’ve also hamstrung America’s own innovation giants. Nvidia’s plummeting market share in China is just one example of how these restrictions backfire, pushing China to invest in homegrown technology while isolating U.S. companies from one of the world’s largest markets. Instead of containment, the policies have triggered accelerated competition. If Trump’s administration continues down this path, the so-called “America First” strategy may ultimately leave American firms last. Tariffs and tech barriers aren't just bad economics—they’re a losing game in global leadership.
