OpenAI avoided chip-export stance to avoid antagonizing Nvidia, Noam Brown pushed back
steph_palazzolo · x · 2026-11-04
The Information reports Nvidia and Jensen Huang have used immense soft power to protect their business and shape policy— even OpenAI's.
- Last month, OpenAI senior research scientist Noam Brown posted a chip-export story in Slack and bluntly asked, "What is our policy on chip exports?"
- Policy leaders responded by citing past posts (like June's frontier AI safety blueprint) and directed staff to the global affairs team rather than discussing on Slack
- Over the past year OpenAI avoided a public stance on China chip export controls because Altman and other leaders feared alienating Nvidia and Huang
- A senior policy staffer privately admitted the company was less vocal than under the Biden administration for the same reason
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