Jensen Huang Says He Will Accept California's 'Billionaire Tax'

Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA and the world’s ninth-richest person, stated that he is not worried about the so-called "billionaire tax" currently under consideration in his home state of California, and that he is willing to accept it.

On January 6 (local time), in an interview with Bloomberg TV, CEO Huang was asked about California’s proposed wealth tax and replied, "To be honest, I have never thought about that issue."

Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA. Photo by AFP Yonhap News

He went on to say, "We chose to live in Silicon Valley, and whatever taxes they impose, we will accept them as they are," adding, "I really don’t care."

Progressive Democratic lawmakers in California, along with the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW), are pushing for a one-time 5% wealth tax on individuals with a net worth of $1 billion or more (approximately 1.4488 trillion won). If the bill passes, the tax will be levied based on net worth as of January 1 this year. According to asset information company Altrata, as of 2024, about 255 billionaires are registered as having their businesses based in California, accounting for 22% of all billionaires in the United States.

On this day, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, CEO Huang’s net worth stood at $155 billion, ranking him ninth in the world. If the 5% tax is imposed, he would have to pay $7.75 billion.

While CEO Huang said he would continue to reside in California even if the wealth tax is imposed, other billionaires have left the state before the January 1 tax assessment date due to concerns over the large tax burden. Peter Thiel, billionaire investor and founder of PayPal and Palantir, opened a Thiel Capital office in Miami and relocated to Florida, while David Sacks, who served as the "AI czar" in the Trump administration and was a member of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, moved to Austin, Texas.

NVIDIA’s headquarters is currently located in Santa Clara, California. CEO Huang explained that NVIDIA remains in Silicon Valley because that is where the talent is. He also emphasized that, while many in the tech industry are concerned about taxes, he is not, stating, "I am someone who is shaping the future of AI."