Greenpeace in Berlin GTC protests NVIDIA chips entering the Russian military and supply-chain carbon emissions

AT A GLANCE

Greenpeace Germany interrupted Huang Renxun’s speech, questioning NVIDIA chips entering Russian military equipment and supply-chain carbon emissions.

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【Huang Renxun GTC disrupted by Greenpeace, questioned over chips ending up in Russian military】

NVIDIA CEO Huang Renxun in Berlin GTC promoted its next-generation AI computing platform. About 20 minutes into the speech, someone stood on a chair and unfurled a banner, questioning why NVIDIA chips had appeared in Russian military drones, as well as the environmental damage caused by the expansion of AI. The protesters were from Greenpeace Germany, which projected “NVIDIA, clean up your dirty business” onto the stage screen. When security prepared to escort the person out, Huang Renxun gestured for them to be gentler and let the protester finish speaking, saying these issues were important but that he hoped to complete the speech first. This year,August Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence found an NVIDIA Jetson Orin computing module in a Russian S-71 cruise missile. The New York Times also reported that Ukrainian officials found products from the same series in the wreckage of Russian military drones. The product is not an expensive GPU used to train large models, but a small civilian computer for robotics and machine vision that can identify and process images locally. NVIDIA said Jetson is not sold in Russia and was not designed for military use; after multiple resales through the secondary market, the company has difficulty tracking its ultimate destination. Greenpeace research this year September said that NVIDIA’s disclosed indirect carbon emissions, including supply-chain emissions, had increased since 2020 by 725%. NVIDIA’s own operational electricity use is matched with renewable energy, but not all East Asian suppliers responsible for manufacturing use clean energy. Greenpeace demanded that NVIDIA extend its renewable-energy target to the entire manufacturing supply chain by 2030 and independently audit global distributors to prevent chips from entering military equipment.

Key points

NVIDIA CEO Huang Renxun in Berlin GTC promoted its next-generation AI computing platform.
About 20 minutes into the speech, protesters displayed a banner, questioning why NVIDIA chips had appeared in Russian military drones, as well as the environmental damage caused by the expansion of AI.
The protesters were from Greenpeace Germany, which projected “NVIDIA, clean up your dirty business” onto the stage screen.
Huang Renxun gestured for security to be gentler and let the protester finish speaking, saying these issues were important but that he hoped to complete the speech first.
The article said that this year,August Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence found an NVIDIA Jetson Orin computing module in a Russian S-71 cruise missile.
The article said that The New York Times reported Ukrainian officials had found products from the same series in the wreckage of Russian military drones.
Jetson Orin was described as a small civilian computer for robotics and machine vision that can identify and process images locally.
NVIDIA said Jetson is not sold in Russia and was not designed for military use; after multiple resales through the secondary market, the company has difficulty tracking its ultimate destination.
Greenpeace research this year September said that NVIDIA’s disclosed indirect carbon emissions, including supply-chain emissions, had increased since 2020 by 725%。
Greenpeace demanded that NVIDIA extend its renewable-energy target to the entire manufacturing supply chain by 2030 and independently audit global distributors.

AI-assisted interpretation

The following is analysis, separate from reported facts. Verify important claims independently.

The incident involved two questions: first, how Jetson products originally intended for civilian robotics and machine vision passed through resales and entered military equipment; second, whether manufacturing activities related to the expansion of AI operations generated more indirect carbon emissions. NVIDIA said the products were not sold in Russia and were not designed for military use, while also stating that resales through the secondary market make their ultimate destination difficult to track.

Why it matters to readers

The incident may draw greater public attention to NVIDIA’s management of distribution channels, secondary-market resales, military-use risks, and manufacturing supply-chain emissions, but the original text does not indicate regulatory penalties, sales restrictions, or financial impacts.

Beginners should focus on distinguishing a civilian product’s intended design use from its ultimate actual use, and observe whether the company strengthens distributor audits, product-flow tracking, and supply-chain emissions-reduction measures.

Risks and unknowns

The evidence comes from a channel’s retelling and does not include original materials from Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence, The New York Times, or Greenpeace’s research.
The discovery of Jetson Orin modules in the relevant missiles and drones cannot be independently confirmed based solely on this article.
It is not possible to verify, based on this article alone, the methodology and scope for calculating the increase in indirect carbon emissions, including from the supply chain, 725%.

Greenpeace in Berlin GTC protests NVIDIA chips entering the Russian military and supply-chain carbon emissions

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