How China could dominate AI era’s ‘tokenomics’ with vast power grids and low-cost models


“Tokens are the new commodity,” said Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, clad in his iconic leather jacket, at the company’s annual flagship developer conference, GTC, last week in San Jose, California.

The chip designer’s helmsman wants to recast his company not as a silicon vendor but as the architect of what he calls “AI [artificial intelligence] factories”, whose standard product is “token”.

While Nvidia is busy writing the rules of a new token economy, a parallel debate is emerging in China around the idea of “token exports”. AI-generated intelligence is essentially a tradeable good measured by token, and China is positioning itself across the value chain – from energy and computing power to models and output.

This explainer examines how “tokenomics” works – and why some believe China has the edge.

AI-generated intelligence is essentially a tradeable good, and China is positioning itself across the value chain – from energy and computing power to models and output. Photo: Shutterstock
AI-generated intelligence is essentially a tradeable good, and China is positioning itself across the value chain – from energy and computing power to models and output. Photo: Shutterstock

What is a token, and why does it matter?

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