Trump says FBI looking into Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's affair with Chinese agent

Washington, Nov 10 (AP) US President Donald Trump said Monday that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang should not worry about the FBI looking into his affair with a woman alleged to be a Chinese government agent.

     “I know the FBI is looking into it in terms of something else, and I think that he'll be in good shape,” Trump said at a White House briefing.

     The sudden emergence of Huang's infidelity has rocked the political class and America's tech sector, creating new concerns about whether China has been able to access the cutting-edge chips designed by Nvidia that are powering the development of artificial intelligence.

     Trump suggested the extraordinary step of directly involving himself in a counterintelligence investigation, a sign of his friendly relationship with Huang and the possible geopolitical stakes.

     “I did speak to him today just to see if he's feeling all right, how you're doing," Trump said. "He said he had absolutely no idea that the person in question was a spy.”

     Trump is slated to meet next week with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Shenzhen, China, at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, but he was noncommittal about bringing up the situation with Xi.

     “No, I don't think so,” Trump said. "I mean, maybe. I'm sure President XI will ask me about it. I just know Jensen very well. I just think he's a very honorable man."

     China denied on Monday it engaged in an attempt to ensnare Huang, saying the spying allegations were unsubstantiated and a smear campaign against Beijing.

     Huang has acknowledged he had been intimate with a business executive, issuing an apology to his wife and to the company in an open letter posted on Nvidia's website. He did not name the woman.

     Nvidia announced Sunday it was conducting an independent investigation into reports that Huang was the “target of a foreign intelligence effort.”

     The New York Times reported that US intelligence determined that the woman was gathering information for Beijing.

     “I support the investigation and will cooperate fully. I love our country and our company. I am committed to protecting NVIDIA and supporting America's national security,” Huang said in his letter.

     In a routine news briefing Monday, a Chinese spokesperson rejected claims it used the woman as a spy.

     “The so-called Chinese spy allegation is unsubstantiated. It is nothing but smears against China,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Monday.

     Beijing earlier had dismissed The New York Times report saying Huang had developed a close relationship with a Chinese citizen named Alice Huang, who ran a company that last year faced claims it was illicitly shipping advanced Nvidia computer chips into China.

     Nvidia shares dropped roughly 5 per cent in pre-market trading early Monday.

     The New York Times said Alice Huang was a former executive of a Singapore-based data centre company called Megaspeed International, whose website prominently touts its partnership with Nvidia.

     Many offices in Singapore were closed on Monday for a holiday. Megaspeed and the Singapore Ministry of Home Affairs did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

     Nvidia is one of the world's most valuable publicly traded companies, alongside Apple and Microsoft. Its sales of computer chips to China have at times been targeted by US regulators seeking to limit Beijing's access to such technology.

     “The key questions are whether he was aware of any espionage activities and whether any confidential or strategically sensitive information was compromised,” said George Chen, a partner and chair of digital practice at The Asia Group, a Washington-based consultancy.

     “Those questions require evidence rather than speculation,” he added in a text message to reporters.

     Huang has lobbied Washington to loosen limits on sales of Nvidia chips to China in recent years, winning US President Donald Trump's approval for selling its H200 chips this year. It's unclear if Beijing would allow Chinese companies to buy those chips in large quantities. Nvidia said in a regulatory filing in August that it has sold only a small amount to China as such sales are restricted by the Chinese government.

     The H200 chips are not Nvidia's most cutting-edge models, but they are still advanced. Previously, Huang also lobbied Trump to be allowed to sell Nvidia's less-advanced H20 chips, which were designed to comply with US export restrictions on China.

     Chinese media have largely focused on Huang admitting to the affair and state media outlets have mainly echoed the official government line. Some have said the New York Times report was aimed at destabilising US-China relations.

     “Whenever China-US relations begin to improve, there are often those firing shots from the shadows,” the state-owned Global Times said. (AP) ARB

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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)