US intelligence officials concluded that Alice Huang, a senior executive at Nvidia customer Megaspeed, was a Chinese intelligence asset passing information to Beijing, and surveillance of her surfaced a close relationship with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, The New York Times reported Thursday. Jensen Huang is not accused of wrongdoing, and no charges have been reported against Alice Huang or Megaspeed.
Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, is a Chinese citizen. Megaspeed is a Singapore-based data center company that buys Nvidia hardware. According to the report, officials suspected she was helping China get around US limits on access to advanced AI chips, and questioned whether her ties to Jensen Huang could give her sensitive Nvidia information or insight into the administration's thinking on chip exports.
The Commerce Department began investigating whether Megaspeed helped China circumvent US restrictions on Nvidia computing technology near the end of 2024. That probe was reportedly handed to the Justice Department this year. Import records from ImportGenius cited by the Times show Megaspeed's Malaysian sister company bought at least $4.8 billion in advanced AI equipment containing Nvidia chips between June 2024 and February 2026.
Key facts
- 01US officials concluded Megaspeed executive Alice Huang was a Chinese intelligence asset, The New York Times reported on Oct. 29.
- 02Surveillance of Alice Huang surfaced a close relationship with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang; he is not accused of wrongdoing.
- 03Commerce began investigating Singapore-based Megaspeed in late 2024; the probe reportedly moved to the Justice Department this year.
- 04Megaspeed's Malaysian sister company bought at least $4.8B in AI equipment containing Nvidia chips from June 2024 to February 2026.
- 05Nvidia says its own inspections found no evidence of diversion; Megaspeed denies illegally transferring chips. No charges have been reported.
Nvidia said its own investigation found no evidence that Megaspeed smuggled chips or that the hardware was diverted to China. Megaspeed denies illegally transferring chips, has retained outside counsel to look into the allegations, and told the US government it would cooperate.
Nvidia spokesperson John Rizzo said Jensen Huang's interactions with Alice Huang "are not unusual or unexpected." Rizzo added that Nvidia is "confident that if the U.S. government believes that any person is a threat to American industry, it would let us know."
“Meetings with customers are part of a C.E.O.'s job; Jensen talks with thousands of customer executives every year”— John Rizzo, Nvidia spokesperson
Rizzo also said customers like Megaspeed "receive ordinary business information" from Nvidia and "zero information relevant to national security."
According to the report, officials who briefed President Donald Trump on the findings roughly a year ago did not believe at the time that Jensen Huang knew Alice Huang was gathering intelligence for China. It is unclear whether that assessment has changed, and Jensen Huang has not received a defensive briefing. People familiar with the classified intelligence told the Times that Trump did not act on the findings.
The White House, the CIA and the National Security Agency declined to comment. Liu Chang, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy, said the US was pursuing "groundless smears and slanders."
The report lands as Nvidia's China exposure faces other scrutiny. Senator Tom Cotton has said Megaspeed imported more than $4.6 billion in Nvidia hardware, and short seller Culper Research has disclosed a bearish position on Nvidia while alleging that restricted chips reach Chinese buyers through firms like Megaspeed. Those claims are disputed.
Businesses linked to Alice Huang continued buying Nvidia chips in 2026, after US officials had become concerned about her activities, according to the report.
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