$4.8 billion Nvidia chip trail: How Alice Huang's company entered Jensen Huang's business orbit

A relatively obscure Singapore-based cloud computing company has emerged as an important part of the controversy surrounding Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, with a reported $4.8 billion trail of artificial intelligence hardware purchases drawing attention to its business links, its former executive Alice Huang and the wider US-China technology rivalry.

At the centre of the scrutiny is Megaspeed International, a Singapore-registered technology company that established itself as an Nvidia cloud partner.

Its Malaysian affiliate, Speedmatrix, reportedly purchased at least $4.8 billion in advanced AI equipment containing Nvidia technology between June 2024 and February 2026, according to The Associated Press and other outlets.

The transactions have drawn attention because US authorities have been investigating whether Megaspeed helped Chinese technology companies access advanced Nvidia processors despite Washington's restrictions on exporting high-performance AI chips to China.

Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, is a former senior executive associated with Megaspeed.

Her reported relationship with Jensen Huang has added another dimension to the investigation, turning what began as questions about international chip transactions into a controversy involving corporate access, intelligence allegations and national security.

However, the reported purchases alone do not establish that the chips were illegally diverted to China.

Nor do they prove that Alice Huang used her business position to facilitate such transactions.

How did Megaspeed enter Nvidia's business network?

Megaspeed's corporate history traces back to 7Road International, a Chinese gaming and cloud computing company that established overseas operations in Singapore.

According to corporate records reviewed by The Straits Times, the Singapore entity was incorporated in 2015 and later changed its name, management, and ownership.

In March 2023, 7Road International was renamed Megaspeed International. Alice Huang, along with another director, Cang Yang, was listed as a managing director. The company transferred ownership to Huang Le Limited that same month.

However, the association did not remain unchanged. In November 2023, ownership was transferred to Swiftdata, a newly incorporated Singapore company.

Alice Huang and Cang Yang subsequently resigned as directors. According to corporate records reported by The Straits Times, Swiftdata remained Megaspeed's registered shareholder.

Megaspeed later presented itself as an Nvidia Cloud Partner in the Asia-Pacific region, offering access to high-performance computing infrastructure and advanced AI systems.

The $4.8 billion hardware trail

The scale of Megaspeed's purchases is what brought the company under closer scrutiny.

According to The New York Times' investigation, Megaspeed began receiving substantial shipments of advanced Nvidia technology in 2024.

Malaysian trade records reportedly showed that its subsidiary, Speedmatrix, was receiving multimillion-dollar shipments of AI hardware.

The purchases accelerated rapidly. The company reportedly acquired around $1 billion worth of Nvidia technology within three months, followed by approximately another $1 billion over the subsequent nine months.

Subsequent reporting put the total value of advanced AI equipment purchased through the Malaysian affiliate at more than $4.8 billion over two years.

The distinction matters: the figure refers to advanced AI equipment containing Nvidia technology, not necessarily direct payments of $4.8 billion to Nvidia.

US investigators reportedly grew concerned about the equipment's destination and intended use.

During a September 2024 inspection of a Malaysian data centre associated with Megaspeed, officials reportedly found Nvidia technology still in shipping boxes.

Investigators suspected some processors may have been intended for onward shipment to China.

However, the available reporting has not established that all, or any specific portion, of the $4.8 billion worth of equipment was illegally diverted.

Why did China become part of the investigation?

The controversy needs to be understood against the backdrop of Washington's efforts to restrict China's access to advanced American semiconductor technology.

Since 2022, the US government has progressively tightened export controls on high-performance AI processors, seeking to limit China's ability to develop advanced computing capabilities with American technology.

Nvidia's processors are particularly important because they power the data centres used to train and operate sophisticated AI models.

Megaspeed's reported business connections with Chinese technology customers therefore attracted attention.

The New York Times reported that several of the company's clients were Chinese and that its business network had links to companies involved in data-centre projects in China.

The investigation also examined the supply chain through which the company procured the hardware.

Malaysian import records reportedly identified Aivres, a US-based subsidiary associated with Chinese technology company Inspur, as a major supplier of the equipment shipped to Speedmatrix.

Inspur had been placed on the US government's Entity List in 2023 over concerns about its activities supporting China's military modernisation.

Aivres' involvement raised additional questions about the complexity of international chip procurement and the potential vulnerabilities in export-control enforcement.

Where does Alice Huang fit into the picture?

Alice Huang's association with Megaspeed matters because she was listed as one of its managing directors during the company's 2023 restructuring.

The New York Times also traced her professional background to China, reporting that she had previously worked in television journalism and finance. The publication noted that some details of her professional history could not be independently confirmed.

Her association with Jensen Huang subsequently became a major focus of media attention.

According to The Indian Express, the two were seen together at a gathering in Taipei in June 2024, during the Computex technology exhibition.

An executive present recalled Alice Huang telling the group she could get Jensen Huang to join them. The Nvidia chief subsequently arrived at the gathering.

They were photographed together again in May 2025 after a business dinner in Taipei attended by AI industry executives.

The New York Times later reported that US intelligence officials suspected Alice Huang of gathering information for Beijing, including information potentially relevant to Nvidia's business strategy and its efforts to sell advanced technology to China.

These allegations remain distinct from the company's chip transactions. Reuters has said it could not independently verify the intelligence claims or Alice Huang's current employment status.

Timeline: The developments behind the Nvidia controversy

• 2015: The Singapore entity, then known as 7Road International, is incorporated.
• March 2023: The company is renamed Megaspeed International. Alice Huang is listed as a managing director.
• November 2023: Ownership is transferred to Swiftdata, and Alice Huang and Cang Yang subsequently leave their director positions.
• Early 2024: Megaspeed establishes its Malaysian subsidiary, Speedmatrix.
• June 2024: Alice Huang and Jensen Huang are reportedly seen together at a gathering during Computex in Taipei. Megaspeed's Malaysian affiliate begins receiving substantial shipments of advanced AI hardware.
• September 2024: US officials reportedly inspect a Malaysian data centre associated with Megaspeed amid concerns about the hardware purchases.
• October 2025: The Straits Times reports that Singapore police investigations into Megaspeed are ongoing.
• February 2026: The reported period covered by the $4.8 billion hardware-purchase trail ends.
• October 2026: The New York Times publishes reports about Alice Huang's alleged intelligence links and her association with Jensen Huang.
• November 8, 2026: Jensen Huang acknowledges infidelity in a message to Nvidia employees. Nvidia announces an independent board investigation into whether a foreign intelligence effort targeted its CEO.

What happens next?

The controversy now challenges Nvidia beyond its commercial relationship with Megaspeed.

The company has to address questions about its customer-screening procedures, the monitoring of advanced chip shipments and the possibility of sensitive business information being exposed.

Nvidia has said its board has no reason to believe that US national security or company secrets were compromised.

It has also maintained that its regional cloud customers receive ordinary business information rather than sensitive trade secrets.

An independent committee of directors, assisted by external legal counsel, will oversee the investigation.

The larger question remains whether the international network through which advanced AI hardware is purchased, transported and deployed has exposed weaknesses in American export controls.

For now, the $4.8 billion hardware trail, Megaspeed's reported Chinese customer connections and Alice Huang's association with Jensen Huang remain three interconnected strands of a controversy that places the global AI industry and the US-China technology rivalry under renewed scrutiny.