Donald Trump called Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang during an all-hands meeting on Thursday, first reported by Wired. Earlier that day, Nvidia announced an employee-funded political action committee as debate around AI policy grew; the company and the Trump administration had not always agreed on how to regulate open AI models and sales of advanced chips to China.
Nvidia’s all-hands meetings typically involve Huang presenting or answering questions on stage to in-person staff at the company’s Santa Clara, California, headquarters, while thousands of remote employees tune in to a virtual livestream. During Thursday’s meeting, Huang received a call on his mobile phone and stepped aside to take it.
Staffers could clearly hear Trump’s distinctive voice through Huang’s onstage microphone but could not make out what he was saying. Huang returned to the stage less than a minute later, and staffers were abuzz about the inadvertent interruption.
Trump later congratulated Huang in a social media post on Nvidia’s “incredible” quarterly sales and rosy financial forecast for next year. Nvidia had reported second-quarter revenue of $96 billion on Wednesday, up 106 percent from the same period last year.
Huang regularly travels to Washington to lobby government officials on Nvidia’s interests in selling chips and building AI infrastructure. He has also been in closed-door meetings with Trump before.
Huang’s microphone carried Trump’s voice, but not the substance of the conversation.
Earlier on Thursday, Nvidia announced a new employee-funded political action committee. Nvidia and the Trump administration have not always agreed on how to regulate open AI models and sales of advanced chips to China. The PAC plans to donate to federal candidates as debate around AI policy grows.