Technology · Apps & Software

Megaspeed Says Suspected China Spy Linked to Nvidia Quit in 2025

Megaspeed, Southeast Asia's biggest buyer of Nvidia chips, says Alice Huang left in August 2025 and has opened an internal investigation. The scandal cost Jensen Huang his job as Nvidia chief executive and now pulls in Washington and Singapore.

By matthew jonathan

November 15, 20262 min read

Megaspeed Says Suspected China Spy Linked to Nvidia Quit in 2025

Megaspeed, the Singapore-based company at the center of the Nvidia scandal, said Alice Huang, a suspected China spy linked to former Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, left her executive role in August 2025. The company also said it has launched an internal investigation into its business.

Megaspeed is the biggest buyer of Nvidia chips in south-east Asia. The scandal has raised questions about whether high-end AI chips ended up in China despite US export restrictions.

What Megaspeed said

The company said it was aware of reports "containing assertions about our business, supply chain and global operations that are not supported by verifiable evidence". It said it "conducts legitimate and lawful business".

Megaspeed said it has "retained external legal counsel to conduct a thorough internal investigation". It added that its supply-chain controls are designed to comply with US export control requirements and local rules in every market where it operates.

The company is suspected of giving Chinese firms backdoor access to Nvidia chips through its data centers in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. Nvidia is banned from selling its advanced chips to China.

How the scandal unfolded

Jensen Huang resigned as Nvidia's chief executive after it emerged he had allegedly had affairs with Alice Huang and with an Nvidia employee. The two Huangs are not related. Nvidia has lost $550bn (£415bn) in stock market value in five days.

Jensen Huang admitted to having been "unfaithful" to his wife after reports of the first affair. Alice Huang worked as an executive at Megaspeed, and the New York Times reported she is suspected of being an intelligence asset for China.

China has denied that she is a spy. It warned the US not to use the scandal as a "pretext for imposing a technological blockade" on AI technology. US Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Justice Department had not yet drawn conclusions on whether she spied for Beijing.

Pressure on Washington and Singapore

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blamed Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's department for failing to properly oversee chip exports. Bessent said that several agencies "were in favour of putting Megaspeed on the entity list for months... but Commerce has the pen". The entity list restricts US trade with overseas firms and individuals.

Lutnick has been called to testify before the Senate Banking Committee next month. Other congressional committees have asked him and his department to retain all records relating to Nvidia and Jensen Huang.

Senator Tim Scott asked Huang to appear voluntarily on December 3 and warned the panel could issue a subpoena. Three House committees have asked Huang for a closed-door interview on December 1.

Singapore does not prohibit transfers of advanced AI chips to companies abroad, but such moves can breach US export controls. The government has said it does not enforce "unilateral export controls imposed by other countries" but expects all companies in its jurisdiction to respect them.

"The American people deserve answers," Scott said on X.