Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang called China's open-source artificial intelligence a "catalyst for global progress" and hailed the country's innovation in the sector as he addressed an expo in Beijing on Wednesday.

Addressing the opening ceremony of the China International Supply Chain Expo, Huang – whose firm this week became the first to touch US$4 trillion in market value – hailed China's role in pioneering AI.

"China's open-source AI is a catalyst for global progress, giving every country and industry a chance to join the AI revolution," he said in a reference to Chinese AI startup DeepSeek.

"AI is transforming every industry, from scientific research and healthcare to energy, transportation and logistics."

Huang praised China's "super-fast" innovation, powered by its researchers, developers and entrepreneurs.

On a personal note, Huang said "I am Chinese but grew up in America" and "my first language is Chinese but I stopped using it when I was five'. He said he is very glad to have the chance to speak Chinese in Beijing.

Nvidia announced on Tuesday that it will resume sales of its H20 AI chips to China after Washington pledged to remove licensing restrictions that had halted exports.

Nvidia developed the H20 – a less powerful version of its AI processing units – specifically for export to China. However, that plan stalled when the Trump administration tightened export licensing requirements in April.

"The US government has assured Nvidia that licences will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon," the company said on Tuesday, adding it was "filing applications to sell the Nvidia H20 GPU again".

Beijing is using the expo as a forum to boost its image as the global defender of free trade, in contrast to the tariff chaos sparked by US President Donald Trump. (AFP/Reuters)