Can Jensen Huang save Nvidia’s China business? Inside Trump’s high-stakes Xi summit

US President Donald Trump is heading to Beijing for his first visit in nearly a decade to meet with President Xi Jinping. Aiming to solidify a fragile trade truce and secure major deals on American exports, Trump made a strategic stop in Alaska to pick up Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. 

Meanwhile, his top trade negotiator, Scott Bessent has already begun preparatory talks with Chinese officials in South Korea.

In a notable move, Trump picked up Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in Alaska to join the delegation. Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Bessent initiated preparatory talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in South Korea to lay the groundwork for the summit. 

The CEOs accompanying Trump are drawn mainly from companies seeking to resolve business issues with China, such as Nvidia which US officials say has struggled to get regulatory permission to sell its powerful H200 artificial intelligence chips there.

“I will be asking President Xi, ​a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to 'open up' China so that these brilliant people can work their magic," Trump said in a post on Truth Social, referring to the delegation ​which he confirmed included Huang.

“I will make that my very first request.”

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was a last-minute addition to the trip. He was not on the original White House list but was spotted boarding Air Force One during a refueling stop in Alaska. 

Trump is set to arrive in Beijing late Wednesday for a high-profile visit that includes a state banquet and a tour of the Temple of Heaven.

Beyond business, negotiations will address critical security issues, including the Iran war, nuclear weapons, and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. 

Trump is expected to ask China to influence Iran to reach a deal with the US to end their conflict, though he has publicly expressed skepticism about needing China’s assistance.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng at Incheon Airport to stabilize economic ties ahead of the main summit. Both nations want to uphold the October agreement, which paused massive US tariffs and secured the global supply of rare earth minerals from China. 

Washington is pushing to export Boeing planes, energy, and farm goods to shrink the trade deficit, while Beijing is demanding the removal of curbs on advanced semiconductors and chipmaking tools. 

Trump’s power to impose tariffs at will has been restricted by the courts, though he intends to find alternative legal avenues to reinstate them. 

The Iran war has triggered high inflation in the U.S., threatening the Republican Party’s control of Congress in the upcoming November midterm elections and weakening Trump’s leverage at the negotiating table.

“Given last year's trade war, keeping the status quo, rather than escalating, is already good news," said Liu Qian, founder and CEO of ​Wusawa Advisory, a geopolitical and business advisory firm, based in Beijing.

“That said, the Trump administration needs this meeting more than China does, ​as it needs to show ⁠to American voters that deals are signed, money is made... so mid-term elections can be secured.”