From Rolling Stone · Jack Crosbie · · 1m
Trump Cabinet Clash Over Nvidia Honeypot
Trump administration's Commerce and Treasury secretaries clash over Nvidia CEO's Chinese-linked mistress.
In brief
Trump administration's Commerce and Treasury secretaries clash over Nvidia CEO's Chinese-linked mistress. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick faces congressional scrutiny after refusing to blacklist Singaporean company Megaspeed, which bought Nvidia chips linked to Chinese intelligence. Originally reported by…
Nvidia CEO Resigns
Jensen Huang resigned after U.S. intelligence revealed his extramarital affair with Alice Huang, a Chinese asset.
“Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, was forced to resign earlier this week after the shocking revelation that he had been having an extramarital affair with a woman named Alice Huang, no relation, who U.S. intelligence services think is an asset for the Chinese government.”
Megaspeed's Chip Purchases
Singaporean company Megaspeed bought Nvidia chips rapidly, linked to Chinese intelligence services.
“Megaspeed, a Singaporean company, was buying up Nvidia chips as fast as it could get them.”
Trade Blacklist Debate
Treasury, Defense, and State departments wanted to blacklist Megaspeed for months but Commerce Department refused.
“The New York Times reports that the Treasury, Defense, and State departments all wanted to put Megaspeed on a trade blacklist for months, even before the Huang honeypot affair had broken, but they weren’t the ones who made the final call.”
Lutnick's Stance
Howard Lutnick, Commerce Secretary, has a personal relationship with Huang and went easy on trade policy decisions.
“Lutnick has been more of a dove when it comes to sanctions policy, advocating against big, broad export restrictions that would, say, block the sale of AI chips to a shell company for the Chinese intelligence services, but also gum up the works for various other countries.”
Bessent's Confrontation
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly blamed Lutnick for refusing to blacklist Megaspeed.
“Bessent said on CNBC this morning, 'You will have to ask them about their internal processes,' referring to the Commerce Department refusing to blacklist Megaspeed, effectively throwing Lutnick under the bus.”
Lutnick Under Scrutiny
Lutnick agreed to appear before Congress after facing backlash over Megaspeed's chip purchases.
“A spokesperson told CNN on Friday that the Secretary had 'proactively agreed' to appear voluntarily before the Banking Committee in Congress.”
What matters most
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick faces congressional scrutiny after refusing to blacklist Singaporean company Megaspeed, which bought Nvidia chips linked to Chinese intelligence.
