Nvidia CEO says conceded China market

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said this week that the company has “largely conceded” China’s advanced AI chip market to Huawei, putting a blunt label on how U.S. export controls have reshaped one of the world’s biggest semiconductor markets. Huang made the remark in a CNBC interview published May 21, a day after Nvidia reported record quarterly revenue and announced a sharp increase in shareholder payouts. The comment landed alongside results that showed Nvidia still expanding rapidly outside China, with first-quarter revenue of $81.6 billion. The company also authorized an additional $80 billion in share repurchases and lifted its quarterly dividend to $0.25 a share from $0.01. ### What exactly did Huang say about China? Jensen Huang told CNBC that Nvidia had “largely conceded” China’s advanced artificial intelligence chip market to Huawei, according to excerpts and a CNBC report published May 21. CNBC said Huang added that Nvidia still wants to return to China, even though he does not expect approval to come easily under current U.S. restrictions. (cnbc.com) CNBC’s interview framed the remark as part of a broader discussion about export controls, demand and Nvidia’s position in China. Huang has previously criticized U.S. chip restrictions, and CNBC reported in 2025 that he called those controls a “failure” that cut Nvidia’s China market share and accelerated local competition. (cnbc.com) ### How big were the earnings that accompanied the comment? Nvidia reported May 20 that first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue reached $81.6 billion, up 85% from a year earlier, with data center revenue of $75.2 billion. The company said GAAP diluted earnings per share were $2.39 and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share were $1.87 for the quarter ended April 26, 2026. (cnbc.com) The May 20 earnings release also included Huang’s statement that the “buildout of AI factories” was accelerating and that “agentic AI” was scaling across industries. Those comments appeared in a release that otherwise focused on demand, margins and capital allocation rather than China. (investor.nvidia.com) ### What did Nvidia do on dividends and buybacks? Nvidia said on May 20 that it increased its quarterly cash dividend to $0.25 per share from $0.01 per share and approved an additional $80 billion share repurchase authorization. The dividend increase amounts to a 2,400% rise from the prior quarterly rate. (investor.nvidia.com) The company presented those moves as part of its first-quarter financial results. Nvidia’s investor relations site lists the dividend change and the added repurchase authorization in the same earnings materials that reported the quarter’s revenue and profit figures. ### Why does Huawei come up in this discussion? (investor.nvidia.com) Huawei appeared in CNBC’s May 21 report because Huang said Nvidia had effectively yielded the advanced AI chip market in China to that company. CNBC described the shift as a consequence of U.S. export restrictions that have limited which Nvidia chips can be sold into China. (investor.nvidia.com) Nvidia has been dealing with China-specific controls for more than a year. In its fiscal 2026 first-quarter earnings release published in 2025, the company said the U.S. government had informed it that a license was required for exports of H20 products into China, leading to a $4.5 billion charge tied to excess inventory and purchase obligations. (cnbc.com) ### What comes next for investors watching this issue? Nvidia’s investor calendar lists its 2026 annual meeting of stockholders for June 24 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time. The company’s financial reports page also keeps the first-quarter fiscal 2027 release, webcast materials and transcript links together for investors tracking management’s comments on China, capital returns and demand. (investor.nvidia.com 1) (investor.nvidia.com 2)