Trump Backs Nvidia Genius Huang —Suggests Tim Cook to Take Charge
President Donald Trump defended the extraordinary talent behind Nvidia while making clear that national security comes first if the woman at the center of Jensen Huang’s affair turns out to be a Chinese spy. In comments that mixed blunt praise for American innovation with a hard-nosed look at the scandal, Trump described Huang’s chips as beyond anything China’s copycats can touch and floated former Apple CEO Tim Cook as the man who could step in if needed.
“Tremendous talent. He did something that nobody else—you know, you have China and these people, they copy, they pirate so much. He has a chip that’s so complex, so brilliant, that you can’t copy it. I mean, it’s beyond copying because of the level of genius. What he’s done is incredible. He built an incredible—Nvidia is unbelievable,” Trump said.
Asked whether Huang should have stepped down, Trump zeroed in on the core issue. “Well, the big thing is, was the woman a spy? And I don’t know if that’s been determined yet. But if the woman was a spy, yes. If the woman was not a spy, perhaps it would be different.”
Trump said he spoke with Huang the day before and that the Nvidia founder is “going through hell.” What weighed on him most, according to Trump, was the damage to his family. “What he feels most badly about is his wife and family. That’s what he is really—that’s what he told me. I mean, in strongest—he called me as the President. I’m President, and he called me, and he said, ‘What I’ve done to my wife and family is…’ That’s what he talked about.” Trump added that he has long viewed Huang as “a fine man” and predicted that “somehow he’ll end up on his feet.”
On whether Huang can be replaced, Trump was realistic. “Well, you know the expression, anybody can be replaced. So it’s very hard to replace him. But I had an idea this morning that I sort of just released. Tim Cook, he just sort of semi-retired from Apple. He’s done one of the greatest jobs in the history of business.
I think if Tim Cook, who built Apple—if Steve Jobs were around, Apple would never be what it is today. Tim Cook took a lot of these brilliant ideas and designs and everything else from Jobs and others, and he made it into one of the great companies of the world in a fairly short period. I think Tim Cook would be a great candidate to run Nvidia.”