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0Nvidia C.E.O. Hitches Ride With Trump to China After Last-Minute Invite
From: The New York Times
President Trump welcomed Jensen Huang, the chief executive of the chip giant Nvidia, late Tuesday onto Air Force One as he headed to Beijing for a summit.
Mr. Huang, who leads the world's most valuable company, had been omitted from a list of business leaders slated to travel to China. But after seeing reports that Mr. Huang wasn't coming, Mr. Trump called him on Tuesday morning and extended an invitation, said a person familiar with the call.
Mr. Huang flew to Alaska late Tuesday and boarded Air Force One during a layover. For nearly a year, he has been lobbying officials in Washington and Beijing to allow Nvidia to sell its artificial intelligence chips to China.
“Jensen is currently on Air Force One,” Mr. Trump said in a social media post. He said it was an honor to have the Nvidia chief executive, who he called “the Great Jensen Huang,” and other business leaders “journeying to the Great Country of China.”
On Monday, the White House released a list of 16 chief executives, including Tim Cook of Apple, Larry Fink of BlackRock and leaders of other companies pushing for deals with China. It did not include Mr. Huang.
That omission was noted across Silicon Valley and Washington. Mr. Huang has forged a strong relationship with Mr. Trump and has acted as a go-between for the administration between Washington and Beijing. His company's chips have been critical to the A.I. boom that is reshaping the global economy, and are coveted by governments and companies across the world.
Selling A.I. chips to China has been contentious in Washington.
Last summer, Mr. Trump approved the sale of an older generation of Nvidia chips to China and planned to take a cut of those sales.
Some Republicans have supported legislation that would limit the scope of those sales, and last year, members of Mr. Trump's own administration intervened to discourage him from permitting the sale of even more advanced A.I. chips for national security reasons.
1. hitch a ride
短语（动词）
释义：搭便车；搭顺风车（尤指非正式地搭乘别人的交通工具）
例句：Huang hitched a ride with Trump on Air Force One to join the China summit.
2. last-minute
形容词
释义：最后一刻的；临时决定的
例句：Trump extended a last-minute invitation to Huang after seeing he wasn't on the list.
3. omit
动词
释义：遗漏；省略；排除
例句：Nvidia's CEO was omitted from the original list of business leaders traveling to China.
4. extend an invitation
短语（动词）
释义：发出邀请
例句：Trump called Huang personally to extend an invitation on Tuesday morning.
5. layover
名词
释义：（飞机旅行中的）中途停留；经停
例句：Huang flew to Alaska and boarded Air Force One during a layover.
6. lobby
动词
释义：游说（试图影响政府官员或立法者的决定）
例句：For nearly a year, Huang has been lobbying officials in Washington and Beijing to allow chip sales to China.
7. go-between
名词
释义：中间人；牵线人
例句：Huang has acted as a go-between for the Trump administration between Washington and Beijing.
8. covet
动词
释义：觊觎；渴望占有（他人之物）
例句：Nvidia's AI chips are coveted by governments and companies across the world.
