US intelligence agencies determined that a Chinese national working as an executive at a Singapore-based data centre company was an intelligence asset for Beijing. She developed a close relationship with Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, according to a New York Times report published on Wednesday.
The Guardian reported that the executive, named Alice Huang or Huang Le, holds Chinese citizenship and serves as a top official at Megaspeed. She had been under surveillance for allegedly helping Chinese developers obtain advanced Nvidia AI chips in violation of US export controls, the Times reported, citing unnamed officials.
During that surveillance, American officials concluded that Alice Huang was passing commercial information to Chinese intelligence and had cultivated a close relationship with Jensen Huang, who is not related to her. The finding alarmed White House officials because of the Nvidia CEO's close partnership with President Donald Trump on AI policy.
Trump was briefed on the intelligence findings roughly a year ago but chose not to act, the Times reported. White House officials told the newspaper that, in their professional opinion, it was doubtful Jensen Huang would have been unaware of Alice Huang's role.
Nvidia spokesperson John Rizzo said the CEO's interactions with Alice Huang were "not unusual or unexpected" because meetings with customers are part of a chief executive's job. He added that Megaspeed and similar customers "receive ordinary business information, not sensitive Nvidia trade secrets." He said they receive zero information relevant to national security.
Gizmodo reported that Megaspeed said in a statement to the Times that its "current leadership" takes the matter "extremely seriously." The company is committed to establishing the facts behind these allegations. It has retained outside counsel for an internal investigation and notified the US government of its cooperation.
The Indian Express reported that Jensen Huang has lobbied aggressively against restrictions on the sale of advanced AI chips to China. In December 2025 the Trump administration approved Nvidia's sale of H200 chips to Chinese buyers under a deal that guaranteed the government 25 percent of the profits. Earlier this month Trump awarded Huang a National Medal of Science at a White House ceremony.
US intelligence agencies have not given Jensen Huang a defensive briefing, a precautionary measure sometimes provided to Americans targeted by foreign spies, the Times reported. The reason remains unclear; officials speculated it could stem from concern that a briefing might alert Alice Huang that she was under surveillance.