In the 1960s, Phil Knight turned a severed deal with Onitsuka Tiger into Nike, birthing an empire from constraint. Fast forward to 2023: U.S. GPU export controls aimed to curb China’s AI rise, but DeepSeek’s debut signaled resilience. Like Nike, China’s adapting, innovating in chips and AI. Constraints may backfire, accelerating China’s self-sufficient AI ecosystem in a global race for AGI supremacy.