Alice Huang Touted Nvidia Chip Access in AI Investment Pitch, FT Says
Alice Huang, the businesswoman whom US intelligence reportedly suspects of spying on Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang for China, sought investment for a Southeast Asian data center project by promoting her access to Nvidia processors and her commercial ties to Alibaba, the Financial Times reported.
Huang and business partner Kang Wei approached China-based investors in early 2025 about a project worth several hundred million dollars, the newspaper reported on Monday, citing two investors who received the pitch. One said the pair assured prospective backers they could obtain the graphics processing units needed for the development and identified Alibaba as a customer.
The report adds details about the financing and customer relationships behind Megaspeed, a Singapore-based Nvidia customer facing investigations into alleged chip smuggling. It comes a day after Nvidia announced an independent inquiry into reports that its chief executive had been targeted by foreign intelligence.
Alice Huang did not disclose a close relationship with Jensen Huang during the investment presentation or her regular business dealings, the FT reported. The newspaper did not say whether the proposed project secured the investment sought.
The FT also identified financial links between Alibaba and Megaspeed. Company documents showed that Alibaba’s Singapore subsidiary Apex Enterprise Solutions lent money in June 2024 to Speedmatrix, Megaspeed’s Malaysian subsidiary. Speedmatrix pledged its entire business as collateral, according to the report.
Megaspeed’s balance sheet expanded from $33 million to $3 billion during 2024, largely through dealings involving its subsidiaries, the newspaper said.
Alibaba was the anchor customer for Megaspeed’s Southeast Asian cloud business from its inception and remains its largest client, according to two people cited by the FT. One said Nvidia first entered procurement discussions with Megaspeed after the company presented its leasing contract with Alibaba.
The arrangements highlight the distinction between renting computing capacity overseas and acquiring the underlying controlled processors. The FT reported that Chinese companies can legally lease overseas data center capacity. Separately, US Commerce Department guidance says exports of certain advanced computing equipment to Chinese-headquartered companies or their overseas subsidiaries require licenses, even when the equipment is destined for another country.
Megaspeed has strongly denied illicit activity involving chips, the FT said.
The latest disclosures follow a rapid escalation in scrutiny of Jensen Huang. The New York Times reported on October 29 that US officials believed Alice Huang was passing intelligence to Beijing. On November 6, the FT reported that a US government memo described a romantic relationship between the two and said American intelligence believed she had been recruited by China’s Ministry of State Security.
On November 8, Jensen Huang acknowledged infidelity in a public message to Nvidia employees, apologized to his family and colleagues, and promised to cooperate with the board’s investigation. His message did not identify the other person involved.
Nvidia said independent directors, assisted by outside counsel, would oversee the inquiry. The board expressed confidence in Huang and his leadership team and said it had “no reason to believe” that national security or company secrets had been compromised.
Congressional scrutiny preceded the admission. Three Republican House committee chairmen requested a closed-door briefing with Huang for November 18, seeking information about his interactions with Alice Huang and Nvidia’s protections against foreign espionage. They asked him to accept the proposed date or offer an alternative by November 11.
China’s Foreign Ministry rejected the espionage allegation on November 9, the FT reported. Singapore separately said on October 31 that investigations into Megaspeed were ongoing, while denying that it had investigated Alice Huang over alleged Chinese intelligence ties.
Nvidia shares fell about 5% in premarket trading on Monday following the announcement of the board investigation.
