China’s Ministry of State Security recruited a tech executive to spy on Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in an effort to acquire intelligence on advanced U.S. artificial intelligence semiconductors, according to reporting from The New York Times.
The operative, identified as Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, was tasked with collecting technical information regarding American AI hardware and attempting to influence Nvidia into supplying its top-tier processors to China. Megaspeed operates as a customer of Nvidia, and Alice Huang maintained relationships across the hardware industry, including with high-level executives at Gigabyte. Alice Huang and Jensen Huang are not related, though the report characterized their relationship as close.
Following the disclosure, three U.S. House committees have requested that Jensen Huang attend a joint, closed-door congressional briefing to answer questions regarding his interactions with her. The ties were previously brought to the attention of President Donald Trump during a briefing last year, though the administration took no action at the time.
Source: The Verge
