Washington DC: Three Republican leaders of US House committees have asked Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to attend a closed-door briefing regarding his relationship with a technology executive reportedly identified as a Chinese intelligence asset.
“Recent reports raise significant national security concerns regarding the PRC’s access to sensitive U.S. technology and information,” the Republican lawmakers wrote in a letter to Huang unveiled on Thursday, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
The lawmakers are seeking details about Huang’s interactions with Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, along with information on Nvidia’s “security protocols against foreign adversary espionage.” The brief letter is dated Wednesday.
Although the letter does not specify the reports it refers to, The New York Times reported last week that US intelligence had found Alice Huang, a Chinese citizen suspected of funneling information to Beijing, had “developed a close relationship” with Jensen Huang.
According to the report, US President Donald Trump, who has himself developed close ties with Jensen Huang while championing the American artificial intelligence industry, was briefed about a year ago on the intelligence findings.
Trump “chose not to do anything with the information,” the newspaper reported, citing interviews with people briefed on the surveillance and other sources.
The letter addressed to Huang was signed by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Rick Crawford, R-Ark.
Nvidia did not directly respond to CNBC’s request for comment on the letter or confirm whether Huang would attend the proposed briefing.
Instead, the company issued a statement largely similar to the one it had previously provided to The New York Times. A spokesperson suggested that Jensen Huang’s interactions with Alice Huang were no different from his meetings with other executive clients.
“Our regional cloud customers receive ordinary business information — not sensitive NVIDIA trade secrets—and zero information relevant to national security,” the spokesperson said.
“Meetings with customers are part of a CEO’s job; Jensen talks with thousands of customer executives every year,” the spokesperson added. “We’re confident that if the U.S. government believes that any person is a threat to American industry, it would let us know.”
A spokeswoman for Mast did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for additional information. Megaspeed also did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The lawmakers have invited the Nvidia CEO to attend an in-person joint briefing on November 18. Nvidia is scheduled to announce its third-quarter earnings on November 17.
“China’s access to that sensitive U.S. tech is core to the investigative work of our three committees this Congress,” the committee leaders wrote. “It is vital that Congress determines the extent to which U.S. national security has been placed at risk.”
