Jensen Huang in Beijing With Trump: NVDA Hits Record on China Deal Hopes

President Trump's state visit to Beijing on May 13-14 took on unexpected tech-sector significance when NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang was added to the delegation at the last minute, alongside Tim Cook (Apple), Elon Musk (Tesla), and BlackRock's Larry Fink. The inclusion of the world's most valuable semiconductor designer in a high-stakes US-China summit fueled speculation about potential relaxation of AI chip export curbs that have constrained Nvidia's addressable market since 2022. Within hours of news that the US government had approved H200 chip sales to 10 Chinese companies, NVIDIA shares rallied to a fresh all-time high, pushing the company's market cap above $5.5 trillion, a historic milestone.

The policy backdrop is significant. US export controls on advanced AI chips have been a major drag on Nvidia's growth trajectory and a flashpoint in US-China trade tensions. Trump's willingness to invite the semiconductor industry into the Beijing summit signals openness to recalibrating those restrictions as part of a broader trade and investment reset. Reports that Huang was seen in Beijing shortly before the talks began and that H200 approval came through in May underscored the summit's potential to unlock billions in pent-up demand from Chinese cloud providers and government entities.

The tech-sector rally extends beyond Nvidia. The presence of Cook, Musk, and Fink alongside Huang suggests a coordinated industrial policy message: US tech leaders are willing to engage constructively with Beijing if trade barriers are lowered. Broadcom (AVGO) and advanced packaging firms stand to benefit from increased chip design wins in China. Conversely, if the summit results in looser export rules, US suppliers will gain share in Chinese infrastructure buildout, potentially easing supply-chain risks that have weighed on all semis.

Critics warn that any relaxation of export controls would face Congressional pushback, especially from national security hawks. Defense contractors and semiconductor hawks may block major policy shifts via legislation or regulatory action. Additionally, market optimism may be pricing in a scenario that remains politically fraught; a breakdown in summit talks would erase these gains overnight.