Security Risks Surrounding 'Nvidia' Put Trump in the Crosshairs of Criticism

US President Donald Trump has faced accusations of failing to deal with potential security risks surrounding the relationship between Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and a Chinese businesswoman suspected of links to espionage activities.

This comes amid reports indicating that Trump had been aware of these risks since last May, placing his administration before escalating political and security repercussions.

The French newspaper "Le Monde," in a report by its correspondent in San Francisco, Arnaud Le Parmentier, examines the dimensions of the case and its political implications, relying on information provided by the "New York Times" regarding Trump being briefed in advance about the risks associated with Huang's relationship with the Chinese businesswoman, and the questions raised by the case concerning the US administration's handling of potential leaks of advanced technology to China.

Early Warnings
According to the report, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed President Trump in early May of the risks associated with Huang's relationship with the Chinese businesswoman Alice Huang, who is suspected of having ties to Chinese intelligence agencies. This came just before the US delegation traveled to Beijing for an official visit.

The report noted that Trump asked Huang to join his presidential plane, "Air Force One," during a stopover in Anchorage, Alaska, after noticing his absence from the US delegation. However, the President denied knowledge of the issue at the time, stating on November 9 that he had not been informed about it.

The repercussions of the case go beyond the personal aspect; information revealed commercial transactions worth billions of dollars between "Nvidia" and "Megaspeed," which was under the management of the Chinese businesswoman for a period and is headquartered in Singapore. The company made its servers in Malaysia available to the Chinese firm "Alibaba" to train artificial intelligence models, amid suspicions regarding the illegal transfer of US electronic chips subject to export restrictions to China.

Disagreements and Demands for Accountability
The file sparked disagreements within the US administration after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly criticized Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, accusing his department of failing to add "Megaspeed" to the list of entities subject to sanctions and trade restrictions.

Bessent stated that the Departments of the Treasury and Defense, along with the US Trade Representative and the Department of State, had supported adding the company to the list for months, noting that the final decision rests with the Department of Commerce. He also expressed dissatisfaction with the potential leakage of "Nvidia" chips to China, confirming that Trump had previously clarified that Beijing should not obtain chips exceeding the "H100" model.

In Congress, Republican Senator John Kennedy called on the Commerce Secretary to explain the reasons for allowing the sale of advanced chips worth $4 billion to a company linked to the suspicious businesswoman.

Lutnick adopts an approach supporting continued trade with China, arguing that making US technology available to it may make it more dependent on American products rather than pushing it to develop local alternatives. Criticisms of this approach have increased given the commercial interests linked to "Cantor Fitzgerald," founded by Lutnick and currently managed by his family, which holds interests in "Nvidia."

Demands for accountability extended to both the Republican and Democratic parties; three committees in the House of Representatives, concerned with China, Intelligence, and Foreign Affairs, called for questioning Huang regarding the extent to which the case affects US national security.

Additionally, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer demanded that the administration disclose what measures it had taken, and whether Trump had issued directives preventing investigations into the case.

In contrast, US Attorney General Todd Blanche downplayed the certainty of the allegations against Alice Huang, confirming that investigators are examining the case and that no final conclusion has been reached regarding her identity or the nature of her connections.