Nvidia CEO: Market forces, not new laws, will keep AI safe

At the Salesforce Dreamforce conference in San Francisco on September 15, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said that ensuring AI safety does not require new legislation, arguing that market forces are already sufficient to constrain AI products. Speaking in a conversation with Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, he said companies should decide their own release pace and ensure their products win market acceptance.

Huang rejected the framing that AI innovation and safety are in opposition, calling it a "false dichotomy." He said both can be achieved at the same time, with the key being to manage release timing until companies are confident in market acceptance. He noted that market forces have long existed and are enough to effectively discipline AI product safety.

His remarks come amid ongoing U.S. debates over AI governance. Unlike the EU's AI Act, the U.S. Congress has not passed a comprehensive federal AI law, and current proposals are more targeted. A bipartisan group of lawmakers recently introduced the "AI Kill Switch Act," which would require developers of advanced AI systems to retain the ability to limit, pause, or shut down their systems, with the Department of Homeland Security authorized to order shutdowns if systems show signs of spiraling into catastrophic harm. Some lawmakers, led by Senator Bernie Sanders, have pushed to pause development of "superintelligent AI" until federal safety review rules are in place. In addition, the Senate Armed Services Committee has included a provision in the annual defense authorization bill requiring human review for military use of AI weapons. The White House also signed an executive order in June 2026 promoting advanced AI innovation and safety, and established an "AI Cyber Security Clearinghouse."