Cloud computing firm Megaspeed has come under fresh scrutiny as the US looks into Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s affair with a businesswoman alleged to be a Chinese spy.
asserted
US → come → businesswoman
Nvidia has seen hundreds of billions of dollars wiped from its value in recent days after the US chipmaker said it would investigate Huang’s admitted relationship with the former Megaspeed director Alice Huang.
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it → see → director
China says allegations about Chinese spies are “entirely groundless” and “intended to smear and malign China”.
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allegations → say → China
But US intelligence officials nevertheless believe Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, was funneling information to Beijing.
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Huang → believe → Beijing
For years, Washington has tried to keep China from gaining the know-how to rival the United States in cutting-edge AI, which Nvidia’s chips support.
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chips → try → which
Now attention turns to Megaspeed over suspicions that it helped Beijing gain access to advanced AI chips whose export to China is restricted.
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export → turn → China
Megaspeed was incorporated in 2015 as 7Road International before changing its name to Megaspeed International in March 2023, when it was bought by a British Virgin Islands company called Huang Le Ltd.
Alice Huang ended her eight month tenure as managing director months later, in October 2023, but is reported to still be involved in the company.
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Huang → incorporate → company
In November 2023, the firm was sold again to a Singaporean entity called Swiftdata, which says its main job is providing hosting services by non-data centres.
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job → sell → centres
Megaspeed's assets increased sharply to $3 billion in 2024 from $33 million in 2023, its business filings showed.
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filings → increase → 2023
The company soon became one of Nvidia’s biggest Asian customers and grew rapidly as a link between the US chipmaker and the Chinese tech group Alibaba.
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company → become → chipmaker
Two Singapore citizens are listed as officers of both Megaspeed and Swiftdata.
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citizens → list → Megaspeed
Singapore has come under mounting pressure from the US to clamp down on companies suspected of transferring advanced AI chips to Chinese firms.
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Singapore → come → firms
But the city-state does not necessarily exclude such transfers.
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state → exclude → transfers
Singaporean police are now conducting their own investigation into Megaspeed, in step with US authorities.
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police → conduct → authorities
US intelligence officials have already concluded Alice Huang was a Chinese intelligence asset, according to the New York Times.
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Huang → conclude → Times
What did US intelligence find?
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intelligence → find → What
According to the New York Times, US president Donald Trump was briefed on intelligence findings around a year ago but chose to do nothing with them.
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Trump → accord → them
It was late last year that US authorities began investigating Megaspeed over suspicions it was helping to divert Nvidia chips to China.
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it → begin → China
Singapore police said they would investigate the firm over “suspected breaches of our domestic laws” after a US senator asked the commerce department to look into related concerns.
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senator → say → concerns
According to the NYT, officials suspected it was Alice Huang who was feeding information directly to Beijing on how to gain access to the advanced AI chips.
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who → accord → chips
Megaspeed has denied any wrongdoing and told the newspaper that it was “committed to getting to the facts behind these allegations” and would welcome a “formal, evidence-based investigation”.
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it → deny → investigation
It said in a statement last year that “there has been no evidence of any violations concerning the illicit transfer of chips or any illegal activities”.
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It → say → chips
And Nvidia said Megaspeed was just like any other regional customer, and that such customers only “receive ordinary business information - not sensitive Nvidia trade secrets - and zero information relevant to national security”.
Who is Alice Huang?
For all the concerns above, the affair between Alice Huang and Nvidia’s Jensen Huang has rocked the tech and political worlds.
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affair → say → worlds
It remains unclear how long the affair lasted, and when exactly the relationship might have ended.
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relationship → remain → ?
Alice Huang was a Chinese finance executive before becoming involved in artificial intelligence, data centers and computer chips.
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Huang → become → intelligence
She became Megaspeed’s controlling shareholder in March 2023, according to research by the C4ADS, a Washington-based nonprofit focused on global security.
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She → become → security
But by November 2023, she was no longer listed as a director, and all her shares were transferred to a Singaporean businessman, Tan Yong Pong, who also is known as James Tan.
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who → list → Tan
While public records suggest Alice Huang left Megaspeed, short seller Culper Research issued a report in May this year that cited a Megaspeed employee saying Huang was “actually still our boss” and was still involved in the company’s daily operations.
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Huang → suggest → operations
Before Megaspeed, Alice Huang previously held senior positions at the Chinese firm Shanghai Hexi Investment Co. from around 2015 to 2017, according to social media posts and records from Simuwang, a Chinese private equity database.
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Huang → hold → Simuwang
Before that, she worked at HSBC’s Hong Kong private banking arm and at CITIC Securities, a Chinese investment bank.
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she → work → Securities
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