Anthropic CEO blasts Nvidia chip exports at Davos
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei delivered a striking critique of both the U.S. administration and major chipmakers, including Nvidia, at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday, following the U.S.’s approval of Nvidia’s H200 chips and AMD processors for certain Chinese customers.
The chips, while not the most advanced, are high-performance AI processors, making the export decision controversial. Amodei, whose company relies heavily on Nvidia GPUs and recently received up to $10 billion in investment from the chipmaker, expressed incredulity at the move, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
“The CEOs of these companies say, ‘It’s the embargo on chips that’s holding us back,’” Amodei said, warning that the decision could backfire on the U.S. He emphasized the strategic importance of maintaining a technological edge over China, saying, “We are many years ahead of China in terms of our ability to make chips… it would be a big mistake to ship these chips.”
Amodei painted a dramatic picture of future AI, likening it to “a country of geniuses in a data center… 100 million people smarter than any Nobel Prize winner,” under the control of one nation, illustrating the national security stakes. He then made a striking comparison: “I think this is crazy… it’s a bit like selling nuclear weapons to North Korea and [bragging that] Boeing made the casings.”
The remarks were particularly notable given Nvidia’s central role in Anthropic’s operations and its recent financial and technological partnership with the AI firm. Despite the potential business and diplomatic risks, Amodei spoke openly, underscoring the existential urgency AI leaders feel in the current global race and signaling a willingness to prioritize national security concerns over conventional corporate caution.
His remarks suggest that, in the rapidly evolving AI landscape, even major partnerships and investor relations may take a back seat to discussions about global technology and geopolitical strategy.
Similar news
