The relationship between Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Alice Huang, a Megaspeed executive suspected by US authorities of working for China, has heightened concerns about espionage in the artificial intelligence industry, according to The New York Times. The Chinese government has denied the allegations.
Megaspeed, a Singapore-based data-centre company, buys chips from Nvidia. Since 2024, the US government has suspected that the company was illegally reselling some of those chips to Alibaba and other Chinese firms. Washington has restricted exports of the most advanced models to China since 2022.
The New York Times reported that surveillance of Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le and identified as a Chinese citizen, revealed a longstanding close relationship with Jensen Huang. Images posted on LinkedIn and YouTube show the two together at parties and leaving restaurants, although the newspaper did not specify the nature of the relationship.
Nvidia has rejected the suspicions, saying that Jensen Huang maintains social relationships with thousands of customers and does not share professional secrets with them. According to the report, US intelligence agencies considered the connection potentially risky and warned Donald Trump about it a year ago. Trump reportedly chose not to take action. Huang has been described as a key ally of the president’s effort to strengthen the US artificial intelligence industry with limited security controls.
The allegations come as technology companies face growing concerns about attempts to obtain sensitive information through their employees and personal networks. Earlier in October, the FBI arrested Abdulrahman Alfozan, a Saudi engineer working for OpenAI, after the company’s security team allegedly found him placing listening devices in meeting rooms used for senior-level decisions.
US authorities later cited his links to Saudi officials when seeking to extend his detention. The devices had reportedly been concealed in toilet paper, and some homemade equipment had been made with help from ChatGPT used by his wife. Alfozan carried out the operation two weeks before travelling to Saudi Arabia on parental leave without a return ticket. His wife and child subsequently moved there permanently.
The concerns have led major Silicon Valley companies to provide employees with training on how to avoid espionage approaches. Those sessions reportedly include warnings about personal relationships that could be used to gain access to confidential information.
China rejected The New York Times report on Friday. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun described the allegations as unfounded and defamatory, and said they represented an attempt to discredit China.
Sources: El País Tecnología.