U.S. President Donald Trump met with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang at the White House on Friday to discuss AI policy, including China’s DeepSeek and potential restrictions on AI chip exports, according to a source familiar with the meeting.
Trump provided little detail but praised Huang, calling him a “gentleman.”
“I can’t say what’s gonna happen. We had a meeting. It was a good meeting,” Trump said.
The meeting came as the U.S. government prepares to impose tighter restrictions on AI chip exports this spring, aiming to keep advanced computing power within the U.S. and its allies while limiting China’s access.
“We appreciated the opportunity to meet with President Trump and discuss semiconductors and AI policy,” an Nvidia spokesperson stated. “Jensen and the President discussed the importance of strengthening U.S. technology and AI leadership.”
The source noted the meeting had been arranged before DeepSeek’s breakthrough AI model shook the tech industry. The president reportedly believes DeepSeek’s emergence suggests U.S. companies may not need to invest heavily in developing a low-cost AI alternative.
DeepSeek’s recent AI assistant quickly became the most downloaded app in Apple’s App Store, sparking fears that China is closing the gap with the U.S. in AI development. The news triggered a selloff in tech stocks, wiping out approximately $1 trillion in market value. Nvidia shares dropped as much as 17% at one point.
The Trump administration is considering further restrictions on Nvidia’s H20 chips, designed for the Chinese market, sources told Reuters. Discussions on the matter are still in early stages but were originally considered under the Biden administration. Meanwhile, U.S. lawmakers are calling for tighter AI chip export controls.
The Commerce Department is also investigating whether DeepSeek is using restricted U.S. chips to power its AI models.