Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang (photo) does not want the development of AI to be deliberately slowed down. On Monday, he received support for this stance from U.S. President Donald Trump. Huang’s position thus differs from that of, among others, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, Elon Musk, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
Speaking at the All-In Summit in Los Angeles, Huang addressed the debate surrounding the pace at which increasingly powerful AI models are being developed. This followed a recent call by Amodei to slow down the development of AI capabilities. Musk and Altman have publicly endorsed that idea.
During the event, Huang received a phone call from Trump, according to TechCrunch. The Nvidia CEO played the phone call over a microphone for the audience to hear. Trump spoke out against efforts to slow AI development. In his view, such initiatives play into the hands of countries like China. “We’re not going to let that happen,” Trump said. Huang agreed: “You’re right. We’re not going to let that happen.”
The battle for AI leadership
The discussion about the pace of AI development directly impacts Nvidia’s position. The company is the leading supplier of accelerators for training and running large AI models and benefits greatly from technology companies’ investments in AI infrastructure.
Trump also explicitly frames the discussion in the context of technological competition with China. According to the president, the United States must manage AI risks carefully without hindering the sector’s development.
Opposition to data centers
The debate over the pace of AI development coincides with growing opposition to the infrastructure it requires. Trump and others, including Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan, have suggested that opposition to new data centers is partly fueled to weaken the U.S. position in AI.
However, a recent Gallup survey shows that opposition among Americans is significant. Seven out of ten respondents oppose the construction of data centers in their own communities. More than half cite concerns about the impact on natural resources and the environment. About one-fifth fear higher costs of living and impacts on their living environment.
During his conversation with Huang, Trump made it clear that, in his view, these concerns should not slow the sector. He believes the United States must maintain its leading position in AI.