Beijing on Friday rejected a New York Times report alleging that US intelligence had uncovered a spy plot targeting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, calling the claims "groundless speculation" and an attempt to tarnish China's image.
According to the report, US officials had determined that a senior Chinese executive at a Singapore-based data centre company had been feeding information to Beijing. The executive, identified as Alice Huang (also known as Huang Le), was said to have developed a close working relationship with Jensen Huang and was being monitored for possibly diverting advanced AI chips to China.
At a regular press briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun dismissed the story, stating that it was "nothing more than an attempt to smear China." He did not elaborate on the specifics of the allegations.
Nvidia, for its part, issued a statement to AFP on Friday, defending the interactions between its CEO and the executive in question. "Jensen's interactions with Ms Huang are not unusual or unexpected," the spokesperson said, adding that the company employing Alice Huang, Megaspeed, was treated like any other regional customer.
The spokesperson further clarified: "Our regional cloud customers receive ordinary business information - not sensitive NVIDIA trade secrets - and zero information relevant to national security." They also noted that allegations of Megaspeed smuggling chips to China "were thoroughly investigated and debunked last year."
US-China tech rivalry intensifies
The report surfaces amid an escalating technological contest between Washington and Beijing, with artificial intelligence at the forefront. The United States has imposed export controls on the most powerful chips, aiming to curb China's AI ambitions. These restrictions have had ripple effects across global supply chains, including in Europe, where companies are weighing the costs of de-risking from China.
According to the New York Times, President Donald Trump was briefed on the intelligence findings about a year ago but chose not to act. The decision not to pursue the matter may reflect the delicate balance in US-China relations, which have seen both cooperation and confrontation on technology issues.
Last month, Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping for talks focused on AI safety, a topic Trump has rebranded as "Super Intelligence" (SI). In a post on his Truth Social platform ahead of the meeting, Trump wrote: "A big day with President Xi of China. Super Intelligence (SI) will be a big topic of discussion, but I want to leave it exactly where it is. That is China’s position also. Our guardrail is the DOJ."
The meeting underscored the dual nature of the relationship: while both sides seek to manage risks associated with advanced AI, they remain locked in a competition for technological supremacy. The allegations against Alice Huang, if proven, would represent a significant breach of trust, but Nvidia's denial and Beijing's dismissal suggest the story may be more speculative than substantive.
For European observers, the episode highlights the growing complexity of the global tech landscape, where espionage accusations and export controls are becoming routine. As the EU navigates its own path between the US and China, the outcome of such disputes will have direct implications for European businesses and policymakers.
