U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Chris Coons have asked senior Trump administration officials to preserve records concerning NVIDIA’s advanced artificial intelligence chip exports to China and related national security risks. Their letter follows reports linking NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang to a suspected Chinese intelligence operative and questions the administration’s handling of export control and counterintelligence concerns.
The suspected operative was reportedly an executive at Megaspeed, a company in Singapore that has purchased more than USD 4.8 billion in advanced NVIDIA chips since June 2024, and may have passed sensitive NVIDIA technology information to Chinese intelligence services. Megaspeed is reportedly under Justice Department investigation for potentially diverting advanced chips to China in violation of U.S. export controls. A Commerce Department investigation into the company was reportedly altered following communications with NVIDIA representatives.
The preservation request covers communications between NVIDIA executives and senior administration officials, investigations into potential chip smuggling, and decisions to weaken or suspend export controls on advanced artificial intelligence technology. The senators requested written confirmation by Nov. 17 that preservation directives have been issued across the recipients’ offices, as well as a congressional briefing on the national security risks posed by the suspected intelligence operation.