Key facts
- Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and AMD chief Lisa Su joined the advisory board of Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management.
- Huang previously stated that US and China should collaborate more on AI technology to manage risks.
- Huang described AI competition using a five-layer framework: energy, chips, infrastructure, models, and applications.
- Huang noted China's advantage in energy supply and infrastructure build-out speed.
- Huang stated China leads in open-source AI models, while the US leads in frontier models.
- Approximately 80% of Chinese respondents believe AI will do more good than harm.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and AMD chief Lisa Su have joined the advisory board of Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management, a move that places the two prominent American AI tech leaders in a high-level forum known for connecting global executives with senior Chinese officials. The appointments come amid ongoing US-China tensions in the artificial intelligence sector.
Previously, Huang had advocated for increased communication and collaboration between the US and China on artificial intelligence, despite acknowledging their competitive relationship. Speaking at an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Huang presented a "five-layer" framework to analyze the AI competition, covering energy, chips, infrastructure, models, and applications.
Huang highlighted China's significant advantages in energy supply, stating that China possesses twice the energy capacity of the US for AI-related needs. He also pointed to China's superior speed in infrastructure development, noting that data centers can be built much faster than in the US. While acknowledging the US lead in "frontier models" by about six months, Huang recognized China's dominance in open-source AI, emphasizing its importance for startups and researchers.
Furthermore, Huang noted a divergence in societal views on AI, with approximately 80% of Chinese respondents believing AI will bring more good than harm, a sentiment less prevalent in the US. He warned that the US must be careful not to fall behind in the application and diffusion of AI, as the nation that applies the technology first and most effectively will win the industrial revolution.