Nvidia announces probe into Huang amid reports China spied on him

Chip giant Nvidia's board announced Sunday it had opened a probe into chief executive and co-founder Jensen Huang after he acknowledged an affair with a woman U.S. officials say was working for Chinese intelligence.

Late last month, The New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence officials concluded that Alice Huang, a Chinese executive linked to a Singapore-based data center company called Megaspeed, had been funnelling information to Beijing.

The executive, also known as Huang Le, and no relation to 63-year-old Taiwanese-born Jensen Huang, developed a close relationship with the Nvidia boss, the Times said.

In a message to company employees released Sunday, the Nvidia chief acknowledged having an affair and apologized to his family and company staff.

"I was unfaithful to my wife," he said. "My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry."

Jensen Huang is a huge figure in the artificial intelligence revolution and a close informal adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly spoken out against regulating the industry so as not to let China gain the upper hand in the AI race.

The Times said Alice Huang's relationship with the Nvidia chief could have given her insights into Trump's thinking around AI. The issue of AI is likely to arise during Trump's planned talks with President Xi Jinping later this month at a summit in China.

Asked whether the Nvidia chief would be joining the president's trip to Asia, which includes the Asia-Pacific summit in China's Shenzhen on Sunday, Trump told reporters: "I don't know, but I'll certainly take him."

Trump said Huang was "a fine person, but you never know what's going on. I'm sure -- I hope everything's fine. He's done such an incredible job."

AFP