Suspected Chinese Espionage: Why the US Is Following a Report on Nvidia's CEO "Very Closely"

Lukewarm support. Donald Trump addressed on Saturday the situation surrounding the co-founder and CEO of American semiconductor giant Nvidia, Jensen Huang, following the publication of a New York Times article reporting that he had allegedly been targeted in a Chinese espionage plot. "I have a lot of respect for Jensen Huang. I didn't know the details, but I hope he's okay. He's a great, brilliant person, and we want to protect our brilliant people," the US president told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. "I've always found Jensen Huang to have great integrity," he noted. "But you know, it gets into a very complex subject." The leader stated that the United States was looking into the matter "very closely."

The New York Times (NYT) reported on Thursday that Donald Trump had been briefed about a year ago on intelligence findings concerning Alice Huang, a Chinese businesswoman and investor linked to Singapore-based data center company Megaspeed, which is suspected of providing intelligence to Beijing. According to intelligence agencies, Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, had developed a close relationship with Jensen Huang and passed information to Beijing that may have included data obtained from Nvidia regarding American technology. This version of events is disputed by the company, which, more than any other, has driven the United States' lead in the development of cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) models.

A Loophole Known to Washington

US authorities believe Megaspeed is part of a broad international network of Chinese companies seeking to gain access to the chips required to build and run AI. According to trade data obtained by the NYT from ImportGenius, a platform specializing in chip trade tracking, Megaspeed's Malaysian subsidiary acquired at least $4.8 billion worth of cutting-edge AI equipment—incorporating Nvidia chips and technology—between June 2024 and February 2026. This is an extraordinary figure for a little-known company of this size.

Although the US government has prohibited companies from exporting Nvidia's most powerful chips to China since 2022—in an effort to prevent Beijing from obtaining the technology needed to match or surpass the United States in the fierce global race for AI supremacy—some firms have been caught smuggling them across the Chinese border. Other companies have legally established corporate entities to purchase large quantities of chips to build data centers in Southeast Asia intended for Chinese enterprises, the American daily detailed. This loophole has been viewed as problematic by US officials and lawmakers. Concerned, the Biden administration restricted the practice before Donald Trump repealed those rules… following lobbying efforts directed at the US administration by Jensen Huang.

Was Donald Trump overly lenient? In any case, the president did not act on the intelligence findings at the time, the NYT revealed. The leader reportedly feared disrupting Nvidia's chip sales—which fuel economic growth and stock market performance—and further complicating trade relations with China.

The Proximity Between Trump and Huang

The US president knows Jensen Huang well. Last May, the chip giant's leader accompanied the president on a state visit to China. And when Chinese leader Xi Jinping visited the White House for a state dinner last September, Jensen Huang was seated at the head table.

Jensen Huang is also a member of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, a group of tech industry leaders appointed by Donald Trump to advise on AI policy, emerging technologies, and related matters. In addition, the Taiwan-born businessman negotiated an agreement with the White House occupant allowing the US government to take a 25% stake in certain Nvidia chips cleared for sale to China.

The close relationship between the US president and the Nvidia chief has hindered efforts to curb Nvidia chip sales abroad, according to US officials interviewed by the NYT. They noted that certain investigations and trade sanction proposals regarding China or Nvidia had stalled within the Department of Commerce, the agency tasked with regulating chip exports.