Nvidia Chief Seen as Target of Chinese Spy Plot

U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Alice Huang, a senior figure at Singapore-based data-center company Megaspeed, was acting as a Chinese intelligence asset and sending information to Beijing. Surveillance also revealed her close relationship with Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, whom she met at industry events and dinners. President Trump was briefed about the findings roughly a year ago but took no action, amid concern that restricting Nvidia sales could hurt the economy and complicate relations with China. Jensen Huang has not received a warning that he may be a target. Officials initially did not believe he knew of Alice Huang’s alleged intelligence work, though some administration officials now question whether he could have been unaware. The government has not disclosed what information she allegedly passed to China or its significance.

The case overlaps with a long-running investigation into Megaspeed’s access to Nvidia chips and its data centers in Southeast Asia, which provide computing power to Chinese clients such as Alibaba. Investigators suspect the company has helped China work around U.S. export restrictions; trade records show an affiliated Malaysian company bought at least $4.8 billion in advanced computing equipment between 2024 and 2026. Nvidia says Megaspeed is an ordinary customer and that it provides no sensitive information. The company remains a Nvidia cloud partner and continued buying its products. Jensen Huang has lobbied successfully for looser chip-export rules, while officials say his ties to Trump have stalled some enforcement efforts. Megaspeed says it has hired outside counsel to investigate and will cooperate with U.S. authorities; China’s embassy rejects the allegations.