[Reporter’s Notebook] The Curtain Falls on the Festival: Both the Beginning and End Were All Jensen Huang

The largest information and communication technology (ICT) exhibition in Asia, 'Computex 2024,' which was held amid global attention, concluded its four-day schedule on the 7th (local time).

If one were to pick the most impressive figure, it would undoubtedly be Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA. Anyone involved locally would give the same answer. It would not be an exaggeration to say that CEO Huang essentially marked both the beginning and the end of this year's Computex. Since the news broke in late April to early May that he would attend Computex as the keynote speaker, global interest in the exhibition increased. The local atmosphere heated up when CEO Huang visited Taiwan on the 26th of last month, about a week before Computex. Then, on the 2nd, he reached a peak by unveiling the next-generation AI graphics processing unit (GPU) platform, 'Rubin,' to the public for the first time during his keynote speech. Computex saw participation from a record 1,500 companies from 36 countries, and over 1,000 journalists gathered, making the Nangang Exhibition Hall crowded every day. Many view this as the effect of CEO Huang's attendance. On the 5th, two days before the closing, NVIDIA, led by him, recorded a market capitalization of $3.011 trillion (approximately 4,134 trillion KRW), surpassing $3 trillion and marking a grand finale.

CEO Huang was born in February 1963 in Tainan City, Taiwan, and moved to Kentucky, USA, at the age of nine. He is a Chinese-American who, in a way, is American, and NVIDIA, the company he founded, is distinctly an American company, not Taiwanese. CEO Huang does not know how to write Traditional Chinese, the official language of Taiwan. During his keynote speech, he asked for understanding by saying, "I can understand and speak a little Taiwanese, but not fluently. I apologize to the Taiwanese audience, but I will speak in English." Depending on his mindset, he could have easily distanced himself from Taiwan.

Yet, it is difficult to gauge why CEO Huang tries to hold Taiwan's hand. However, speculation is possible. During a Taiwanese TV show aired during Computex, when asked why he insists on wearing a black leather jacket, he answered briefly and clearly, "I focus on one thing." Focusing on one thing means loyalty. CEO Huang appears to have such loyalty?keeping his eyes off other things, protecting one thing, and pursuing one path. It is thought that he may have a sense of loyalty toward his birth country Taiwan that goes beyond patriotism or hometown affection.

Of course, that is not all. The technological capabilities of Taiwanese companies showcased at Computex were high enough to share the AI era envisioned by NVIDIA. Taiwan also showed a very positive response to CEO Huang. Nearly 100 Taiwanese journalists followed his two-week activities in Taiwan and wrote many articles based on positive evaluations. Taiwanese media, which had referred to him by his American name 'Jensen Huang' until last year, drew attention by switching to his Chinese name 'Huang Renxun (黃仁勳)' this year. This is interpreted as emphasizing that despite holding American nationality, his body and mind belong to Taiwan. On the other hand, it even felt like a greeting to CEO Huang, saying, "Taiwan always welcomes you whenever you come."

Through Computex, the close relationship between CEO Huang and Taiwan was confirmed once again. They are at the forefront and center stage in the newly opened AI era. The world will continue to watch closely what path CEO Huang and Taiwan will take.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.