Who is Alice Huang — the alleged Chinese spy who had an affair with Nvidia's CEO
Alice Huang started her career in journalism and China's financial sector, later becoming an influential figure in the artificial intelligence business. Now, American intelligence agencies suspect her of working for Chinese intelligence. The New York Times uncovered new details of her past and connections.
Recently, a spy scandal erupted around the American technology giant Nvidia. According to American intelligence, the company's CEO, Jensen Huang, might have become the target of a Chinese intelligence operation. Suspicion was raised by his close ties with Chinese businesswoman Alice Huang, who, Washington believes, worked for Beijing.
On November 8, Jensen Huang confessed to his wife about his infidelity, and Nvidia announced an independent investigation. The company emphasized that it currently has no reason to believe that its commercial secrets or US national security were compromised. China has dismissed the espionage allegations.
Journalists from The New York Times examined corporate documents spanning 15 years and spoke with people familiar with Huang's business. This allowed them to reconstruct the woman's journey from Shanghai's financial circles to the international chip market.
From Journalism to Major Investments
Little is known about Alice Huang's early years. Her Chinese name is Huang Le. According to an online biography, she worked as a television journalist for four years before transitioning to the financial sector. Among her workplaces mentioned are HSBC's private banking division and the Chinese investment company CITIC Securities.
Later, Huang ventured into the investment business in Shanghai, where she cultivated acquaintances among wealthy entrepreneurs and technology company executives. One of her main business partners became financier Kang Wei, who gained prominence in China in the 2000s as a successful stock market strategist.
He later moved into private investments and company acquisitions. According to NYT sources, Kang Wei sometimes introduced himself as Alice Huang's husband, but journalists could not confirm if they were actually married.
Together, they created a network of interconnected companies through which they invested in various projects. In 2020, this network participated in the creation of a computing center for artificial intelligence in Shanghai, intended for the internet giant Tencent.
It was this experience that helped Huang transition from financial operations to trading one of the most sought-after technological commodities in the world: advanced Nvidia chips.
Billions in Chips and Proximity to Nvidia's CEO
In late 2022, the US began to restrict the supply of high-performance processors, essential for artificial intelligence development, to China. Washington feared that these technologies could bolster not only Beijing's economic but also its military capabilities.
To gain access to scarce American chips, Alice Huang decided to use a company outside China that would not be formally linked to Chinese owners. In 2023, through a firm registered in the British Virgin Islands, she acquired a Singaporean company that was previously part of the business network of Chinese video game developer 7Road. It was renamed Megaspeed.
Later, ownership of Megaspeed was transferred to another Singaporean company. Thus, on paper, it appeared independent of Chinese business, which facilitated access to American processors. However, according to The New York Times sources, Alice Huang effectively continued to manage Megaspeed's day-to-day operations.
Her personal connections with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang may have played a significant role in the development of Alice Huang's business. As early as December 2023, they met at a restaurant in Singapore.
Just four days after the change in ownership structure, Megaspeed gained Nvidia cloud partner status, granting it access to scarce American processors.
In June 2024, the company began receiving large shipments of state-of-the-art Nvidia chips. Over time, the total value of purchased equipment exceeded four billion dollars. One of Megaspeed's largest clients was Chinese technology giant Alibaba, which obtained computing power through its Malaysian subsidiary.
Meanwhile, Alice's relationship with Jensen Huang was not limited to business contacts. Over the past three years, they met repeatedly in various countries.
They visited restaurants together, met in Shanghai, Singapore, Taiwan, and at a golf resort near San Jose, USA. In March 2025, Alice visited Jensen Huang at Nvidia's headquarters in California along with other businesspeople. Two months later, at a dinner in Taipei, she posed next to him for a photo and kissed him on the cheek.
Alice did not hide her acquaintance with Nvidia's CEO. According to NYT sources, she eagerly displayed joint photographs, emphasizing her closeness to one of the most influential people in the artificial intelligence industry.
Jensen Huang himself initially referred to his contacts with Alice as normal business relations. However, on November 8, he admitted to cheating on his wife and apologized to his family and Nvidia employees.
At the same time, it remains unknown exactly when Alice and Jensen's relationship began and whether it influenced Nvidia's decisions regarding cooperation with Megaspeed.
How Alice Huang Came Under Suspicion
Massive purchases of American chips attracted the attention of US authorities. In late 2024, a representative from the Department of Commerce visited one of Megaspeed's data centers to verify if the received processors were indeed there and being used for their intended purpose.
Some of the equipment was still in boxes. This raised suspicions that it might have been moved to other locations, including in violation of American export restrictions.
Around the same time, Taiwanese authorities, at the request of the US, began monitoring Alice's trips to the island. In 2025, she also came under the scrutiny of Singaporean law enforcement, who were investigating possible violations in import declarations.
For a certain period, the woman was prohibited from leaving Singapore and called in for questioning. However, no evidence of her personal involvement in incorrect declarations was found, so the investigation against her was closed. The investigation into Megaspeed's activities itself continues.
After this, Huang returned to Shanghai, and a new manager began issuing instructions to Megaspeed employees. Nevertheless, the company continues to build a large data center in Malaysia. Chinese engineers from Shanghai Shuoyao, a company within Alice's business network, are also participating in the project.
The most serious suspicions are not related to chip imports, but to Huang's possible work for Chinese intelligence. American intelligence agencies concluded that she was recruited by China's Ministry of State Security. However, exactly when this might have happened, what information Alice was collecting, and whether she received secret information from Jensen Huang, remains unknown.
Nvidia claims it has no reason to believe that the company's trade secrets or information critical to US national security fell into unauthorized hands. Beijing denies the espionage allegations.
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