U.S. investigated Chinese spy plot aimed at Nvidia CEO
techcrunch ·
U.S. intelligence agencies investigated a potential Chinese espionage plot targeting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, according to anonymous sources cited by the New York Times. The investigation focused on Alice Huang, a top executive at Singapore-based AI cloud firm Megaspeed, who was frequently seen with Jensen Huang during business dinners in the region. Sources expressed concern that her close proximity to the CEO might have allowed her to gather sensitive information regarding Nvidia’s strategic plans and lobbying efforts for advanced chip exports to China. This suspicion arises from prior reports that Megaspeed was under scrutiny for allegedly helping Chinese companies bypass export regulations by reselling restricted Nvidia chips. An Nvidia spokesperson denied these allegations, stating that interactions between Jensen Huang and Alice Huang were standard customer meetings involving only ordinary business information. The company emphasized that no trade secrets or national security-relevant data were shared with regional cloud customers. U.S. authorities had been surveilling Alice Huang for approximately one year to assess her ties to China before these specific concerns were raised.
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