NVIDIA's CEO Jensen Huang has publicly addressed the distribution of profits from the AI boom, stating his consistent approach is to "pay employees as much as possible."

On Tuesday, during the Computex exhibition in Taipei, Huang responded to a reporter's question by saying, "I believe people should be paid as much as possible."

He added, "I pay my employees as much as I can. That's what I do, but that doesn't mean it's the right answer." This comment came in response to a question about a recent compensation agreement at NVIDIA's partner Samsung Electronics, where the company and its union agreed to bonuses of up to $400,000 for chip engineers.

Concurrently, NVIDIA also announced plans to increase returns to shareholders. Huang stated the company intends to return at least 50% of its free cash flow to shareholders this year and in the future, further clarifying the company's priorities in distributing the AI windfall.

Pressure Spreads Across the AI Supply Chain

As the global frenzy for AI infrastructure construction continues to heat up, key beneficiaries in the AI supply chain, from South Korea to Taiwan, are facing growing pressure to share profits.

The wage agreement Samsung reached with its union successfully averted a potentially damaging strike crisis. TSMC, another crucial NVIDIA partner, faces similar pressures. TSMC's CEO C.C. Wei chaired an internal employee meeting last week, assuring staff that this year's performance incentive package would see a larger increase than last year's. TSMC may also face further questions on employee compensation at its annual shareholder meeting this Thursday.

According to a company filing from Samsung in March, the average employee compensation at the company last year was 158 million won (approximately $105,000).

Huang Dismisses AI Job Replacement Fears

Beyond compensation issues, employee concerns about AI potentially replacing human jobs are also significant. Addressing this, Huang stated clearly on Monday that the notion of AI threatening jobs is "nonsense," emphasizing that AI will drive growth in revenue, profits, and GDP rather than erode employment opportunities.

Huang's visit to Taiwan for Computex positioned him as a major guest at Asia's largest tech exhibition. At the event, he unveiled several new products, including a new AI chip codenamed "Spark" for the PC market. During a relaxed, two-hour media session, Huang spoke extensively on topics including AI and robotics.