Washington: A senior US senator has questioned whether Nvidia’s advanced artificial intelligence chips are continuing to reach China despite American export restrictions, citing a series of criminal cases that allegedly involved the diversion of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of the company’s technology.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, said recent Justice Department cases raise “urgent questions” about Nvidia’s compliance with US export-control laws, the oversight exercised by its board of directors and the potential risks to US national security.
In a letter sent Monday to Nvidia Executive Vice President and General Counsel Tim Teter and Audit Committee Chair Brooke Seawell, Warren requested information about the company’s compliance practices and the accuracy of its public statements regarding the diversion of advanced AI chips to China.
The Massachusetts Democrat pointed to multiple enforcement actions brought by the US Department of Justice. According to her letter, those cases allege schemes involving the unlawful diversion of Nvidia products, including millions of dollars in graphics processing units routed to China through Malaysia and Thailand, exports and attempted exports of $160 million in H100 and H200 chips, and $510 million in diverted servers.
Warren argued that the allegations undermine statements made by Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang, who has publicly said there was “no evidence of any AI chip diversion” and that Nvidia’s market share in China had “dropped to zero.”
“These recent indictments and allegations raise urgent questions about whether NVIDIA’s Board of Directors is exercising meaningful oversight over the company’s compliance with export controls—and about the risk posed to investors and our national security,” Warren wrote.
The senator said federal regulations prohibit unlicensed exports of advanced AI chips to embargoed countries, including China, and require companies to exercise heightened diligence when products face a risk of diversion or misuse. She cited government guidance warning exporters to investigate “red flags” that could indicate an inappropriate end user, destination or use.
Among the cases cited by Warren was a March 2026 indictment involving three individuals linked to Super Micro Computer, commonly known as Supermicro. Prosecutors alleged they conspired to export more than $510 million worth of servers loaded with restricted Nvidia products to China.
Warren noted that Nvidia continues to list Supermicro in its partner network and that the server maker recently said it continues to expand its partnership with Nvidia.
The letter also referenced reports suggesting that several Nvidia cloud partners in Southeast Asia may have been linked to the diversion of export-controlled AI chips. Warren pointed specifically to reports alleging that Nvidia chips were routed to Chinese technology giant Alibaba through a Thailand-based company.
“Congress has made bipartisan efforts to strengthen export controls on restricted entities, but these efforts are undermined when corporations ignore the diversion of prohibited exports,” Warren wrote.
Warren asked Nvidia whether its Audit Committee considers the alleged diversion of Nvidia products a material legal or regulatory risk, whether it has reviewed the company’s export-control compliance following recent indictments, whether independent assessments have been conducted, and what evidence supports executives’ public claims that there is “no evidence” of diversion. Responses were requested by June 18.
(IANS)
