The 2025 edition of Asia's signature tech gathering didn't break as much new ground as last year, when Nvidia's Jensen Huang unveiled a multi-year road map for AI chip design. But it still drew the attention of an industry parsing the fallout from Washington's campaign to curb Beijing's tech ambitions in the aftermath of DeepSeek.
Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, used its first keynote address at the show to go big on heavy-duty AI, from making cities smarter to bringing robots to manufacturing and making EV design more efficient. The company that assembles the bulk of the world's iPhones had nothing to excite consumers.
Asustek Computer offered a sobering outlook on the prospects of so-called AI PCs.
Huang was among the few executives who addressed that first openly, saying that China is "incredible" at software development and has the resources to make up for any technological gap.
If the US doesn't allow Nvidia to sell within China, local companies like Huawei Technologies will fill the void, he warned. "The local companies are very, very talented and very determined," Huang said. "And the export controls gave them the spirit, the energy and the government support to accelerate their development."