According to an investigation published by 3DNews, an extramarital affair between Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Chinese businesswoman Alice Huang (also known as Huang Le) played a key role in organizing the shipment of Nvidia semiconductor products to China worth at least $7.5 billion. Alice Huang, suspected of espionage activities on behalf of Beijing, together with her husband and sister, built an extensive network of companies in China and Singapore through which Nvidia accelerators were circulated, despite existing U.S. export restrictions.
Corporate network: from Century Litong to Megaspeed
At the center of this structure was the Shanghai-based company Century Litong, registered in June 2023. By October of that year, it had obtained the status of a privileged Nvidia cloud partner, which guaranteed priority access to the company's products. Reports suggest that one of Century Litong's founders was effectively controlled by Alice Huang's sister, Huang Yu, who subsequently exited the company in 2024. In parallel, Alice Huang held a senior position at the Singapore-based Megaspeed, linked to Century Litong, and in 2024, a Malaysian subsidiary, Speedmatrix, was created to acquire Nvidia equipment for subsequent transfer to Century Litong.
Bypassing export restrictions and supply volumes
When shipments of Nvidia chips to China were effectively halted by U.S. export restrictions, Alice Huang allegedly used her personal connections within Nvidia and among distributors to ensure supply continued. As a result, approximately 240,000 units of H100 and H200 series accelerators, as well as a number of A100 models, were imported into China. Century Litong leased computing power and managed data centers equipped with Nvidia accelerators, including models whose sale in the PRC was explicitly banned. Some of these computing resources eventually ended up in the hands of major Chinese tech companies — Alibaba and Tencent — as well as smaller AI laboratories.
The role of personal relationships and lack of paper trail
As noted in the investigation, Alice Huang used her relationship with Jensen Huang to bolster her reputation in business circles, while deliberately maintaining ambiguity regarding her role in the supply chain and avoiding leaving documentary traces. Megaspeed, in turn, received Nvidia products and provided Chinese clients with access to computing power in Southeast Asian data centers or carried out physical shipments of equipment directly to China. Equipment acquired by Malaysia's Speedmatrix subsequently arrived at Century Litong, closing the loop.
Reaction of U.S. authorities
Currently, U.S. authorities are reportedly investigating Singapore's Megaspeed in connection with shipments of Nvidia products from Southeast Asia to China. The results of this investigation, as well as possible legal consequences for the individuals and companies involved, have not been announced at the time of publication. The situation remains the subject of ongoing official proceedings.
It should be emphasized that the information provided is based on an investigation published by 3DNews (author: Pavel Kotov) and reflects the position of this source. Nvidia, Jensen Huang, and the mentioned companies and individuals did not provide public comments in the provided materials. Final conclusions regarding the investigation can only be formulated upon completion of the official U.S. government review.
