Jensen Huang.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s keynote address at the company’s GTC conference in Berlin was interrupted by protestors on Wednesday morning. Minutes into the keynote, hecklers stood on chairs in the auditorium displaying a Greenpeace banner reading, "Nvidia, clean up your dirty business!" While the disruption was largely missed by the official livestream, attendee footage posted to Twitter captured demonstrators pressing Huang directly."Jensen, what about the technology that was found in Russian drones? Those were Nvidia chips. What are you doing about that?" one demonstrator shouted across the hall. "What are you doing about that? What are you doing about the environmental destruction?" The demonstration occurred during Nvidia’s three-day GTC Berlin event, running from October 20–22, which features developer sessions, executive panels, and industry talks alongside Huang’s opening address.
Nvidia CEO on 'Berlin protests'
The Nvidia CEO too made a small mention of the protests on stage, jokingly, he said, "All important issues, but let me get through my keynote." Huang remarked this before resuming the presentation.
Nvidia chips 'found' in Russian drones
The outburst follows reports detailing the discovery of Nvidia components—specifically within Russia's S-71 "Monochrome" weapon, which relies on consumer-grade Jetson Orin modules for autonomous targeting—as well as in cruise missiles deployed against Ukraine.
Some reports in August identified an autonomous Russian AI drone powered by Jetson Orin hardware as the cause of three civilian deaths in Ukraine, marking the first documented case of its kind.A Russian Molniya drone allegedly carrying an Nvidia Jetson Orin module crashed and killed three civilians at a gas station in Zaporizhzhia in August after choosing its final target without a human pilot. A New York Times investigation cited Ukrainian air defense commanders, drone experts, and the forensic team that examined the wreckage, as source of their report.Nvidia confirmed to the New York Times that modules photographed in the recovered drones were Jetson Orin minicomputers, hardware that sells for a few hundred dollars. "Our Jetson Orin modules are consumer-grade products sold to students, developers, and startups for a wide range of beneficial applications," an Nvidia spokesperson reportedly told Tom's Hardware.The statement added, "They are not available in Russia and are not designed for military purposes. Pre-owned Jetsons are available through many reseller channels. Although we cannot track products after they are sold, if we determine that any customer is violating U.S. export controls, we will take appropriate action."