Chinese firm founded by Alice Huang obtained banned Nvidia chips at a Shanghai data centre, Bloomberg reports
What's the deal? A Chinese company founded by Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, procured restricted Nvidia AI chips that were installed at a Shanghai data centre linked to Singapore-based Megaspeed InternationalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg News. Some of the servers were originally sold to Aperia Cloud Services, then an official Nvidia Cloud Partner headquartered in Singapore, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. The hardware later ended up with Shanghai Longteng Intelligent Computing, which Alice Huang founded in 2015, the documents show. It is not clear how the equipment was transferred, and Bloomberg reported that Alice Huang's personal involvement in the purchases has not been established. She sold her shares in Shanghai Longteng in 2017.
The hardware: Aperia bought 22 Dell servers equipped with Nvidia H800 chips, whose export to China is prohibited. Filings with Chinese authorities, reviewed by Bloomberg, show that a Shanghai Longteng subsidiary pledged 193 servers as loan collateral in January 2025, and that the equipment was at the Shanghai facility, identified as the Yangtze River Delta Project. Bloomberg put the value of that collateral at about $73 million, from filings that stated 485 million Chinese yuan. Besides the 22 Dell machines, the collateral included 52 Super Micro systems with Nvidia H100 or H200 chips, which also require a US licence for sale to China, and 119 GigabyteDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → servers whose processors were not specified. Other company documents reviewed by Bloomberg show another Shanghai Longteng subsidiary procured computing servers in May and June 2024 for the same facility, in a purchase the filings priced at 747 million Chinese yuan; the filings do not name the manufacturers or chip models. Earlier signs of a link between the data centre and Megaspeed had been based mainly on investor presentations; Bloomberg reported that Megaspeed featured a rendering of the Shanghai facility in a 2024 presentation.
Responses: Dell said it "stopped all sales and support to Aperia International in February 2025 due to unauthorized diversion concerns." In May 2025, Jensen HuangDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → said there was no evidence of chips being diverted. Nvidia has said Aperia was no longer an active customer when Singapore authorities arrested its chief executive in February 2025 on charges of defrauding server suppliers; the executive has pleaded not guilty, and Nvidia later removed Aperia from its public Cloud Partner list. Aperia has denied wrongdoing. Nvidia declined to comment on the Bloomberg report. Super Micro said it sold the identified servers in line with US export rules and denied any connection to the data centre. Megaspeed did not respond to Bloomberg; on Thursday it said it was investigating whether it had complied with export controls. Malaysia has said it is probing a Megaspeed subsidiary over the possible diversion of advanced AI chips to other countries, according to AFP.
Context: The report was published the day after Huang resigned as president, chief executive and a director of Nvidia, following his admission of an extramarital affair with Alice Huang, a former Megaspeed executive. China has denied that she is a spy. The documents do not establish that Nvidia or Jensen Huang knowingly facilitated the transfers.
Sources: Bloomberg, 13 November
The Hindu (AFP), 13 November
Image credit: Office of the President, Taiwan
