According to reports, an Nvidia employee has been detained in Taiwan over claims of alleged AI chip smuggling into China. The employee is identified only by their last name, ‘Chang.’ On Tuesday, local investigators searched both Chang’s residence as well as their desk in Nvidia’s Taipei office. Nvidia itself has not been accused of any wrongdoing, though Chang faces allegations of breach of trust and forgery.
Chang’s detainment was carried out as part of a larger investigation into the alleged smuggling of AI chips into China. According to Bloomberg, this is just one investigation of at least eight similar probes into potential smuggling routes across four different jurisdictions.
This latest probe out of Taiwan specifically concerns the falsification of documents in order to export about 50 Super Micro servers containing Nvidia AI chips to Chinese shores. Taiwanese prosecutors allege that the defendants had already smuggled chips into China via Japan previously. The US government previously charged three Super Micro employees—including the company’s co-founder—with attempting to smuggle AI chips back in March.
An Nvidia spokesperson said in a statement, “Smuggling is a nonstarter,” before adding, “We primarily sell our products to well-known partners, including [original equipment manufacturers], who help us ensure that all sales comply with US export control rules.”