Trump was briefed about Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's alleged China spy connection before Beijing trip: Report

President Donald Trump was informed aboard Air Force One in May, while travelling to China, that the United States had obtained sensitive intelligence indicating that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was romantically involved with a woman believed to be a Chinese spy, according to people familiar with the matter. The information was conveyed by Secretary of State and National Security Adviser Marco Rubio shortly before Huang joined the presidential delegation to Beijing at Trump's invitation.

This was reportedly at least the second time in seven months that Trump had received intelligence concerning Huang's alleged relationship with the woman. The latest disclosure contradicts Trump's statement on Monday that he was unaware of Huang's relationship with the woman, whom US officials had concluded was working for China's Ministry of State Security, when he travelled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. “No, I didn’t hear about it then,” Trump said when asked at a news conference whether he knew about Huang's connection to the woman before the China summit.

The revelations surrounding the relationship have shaken Nvidia and contributed to a decline in its stock price. They have also brought renewed attention to the growing technological rivalry between the United States and China, particularly their competition for dominance in artificial intelligence. Nvidia's advanced chips remain central to America's current advantage in the AI race. The developments have also renewed scrutiny of Huang's influence over Trump and the administration's policies concerning artificial intelligence and the semiconductor industry.

Since American officials first informed Trump last year that a woman involved in a romantic relationship with Huang was suspected of working for Chinese intelligence, the president has repeatedly downplayed the concerns. When initially briefed on the matter late last fall, Trump decided against taking action, The New York Times reported last month. When questioned on Monday about whether he had received intelligence briefings on the issue last year, Trump said he would need to check. “I’d certainly check with the intelligence people,” he said. “They could have been mentioned. Certainly, it didn’t make much of an impact on me.”

Trump is expected to travel to China again next week. Although he initially suggested that Huang could join him, the president said on Monday that the Nvidia chief would not be part of the upcoming delegation. Despite the controversy, Trump continued to defend Huang. The president said he had spoken with the Nvidia CEO and asked whether he knew that the woman, identified as Alice Huang, was a spy. According to Trump, Huang said he had no knowledge of it.

Trump also hinted that he had no intention of discussing the matter with Xi during his upcoming meeting with the Chinese leader. “I just know Jensen very well,” Trump said on Monday. “I just think he’s a very honourable man.”

Rubio briefed Trump before Huang joined China trip

Trump's May visit to China has come under renewed examination following disclosures about Huang's relationship with Alice Huang, who previously served as an executive at Megaspeed, a Singapore-based company that purchases advanced Nvidia chips. Since late 2022, the United States has restricted direct sales of advanced chips to China. However, Chinese companies have continued to access computing power by renting capacity at data centres in Southeast Asia, including facilities operated by companies such as Megaspeed.

In the weeks leading up to the presidential visit, Rubio supervised the preparation of a memo concerning Huang. The document was shared with a limited group of senior administration officials. According to one person familiar with the matter, the memo was not prepared for Trump and was not presented to him aboard Air Force One. Huang had initially been excluded from the invitation list of business and technology leaders scheduled to accompany Trump to China. His absence attracted media attention before the president departed the United States.

However, without much advance notice, Trump invited Huang to join the presidential trip during a refuelling stop in Alaska. Rubio was among more than a dozen administration officials aboard Air Force One. A US government official, speaking anonymously because they were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly, confirmed that Rubio informed Trump about the issue after learning that Huang would be joining the delegation in Alaska. The official said Rubio ‘briefed the president on the issue’.

People familiar with the events said Trump was not significantly influenced by the information and proceeded with his plan to bring Huang aboard the aircraft. After joining Air Force One, Huang met Trump ‘very briefly’ but "remained in the separate part of the plane for almost all of the trip,” the official said.

Nvidia CEO admits to romantic relationship

Last month, The New York Times reported that US officials had concluded Alice Huang was a Chinese intelligence asset and that she was romantically involved with Jensen Huang. Following that report, Nvidia executives and Huang maintained that their interactions with the woman were part of a normal business relationship with a customer. However, on Sunday, Huang acknowledged that he had been involved in a romantic relationship with her. Shortly afterwards, Nvidia announced that it would launch an independent investigation into the matter.

Nvidia's position on US-China chip sales under scrutiny

Huang has consistently advocated a broader approach to semiconductor sales to China, including before Trump returned to the White House in 2025. His supporters have frequently pointed to his public statements that the United States must maintain its lead over China in artificial intelligence.

Trump has generally aligned himself with Huang and other technology executives and investors, even as disagreements have grown over the international risks associated with artificial intelligence. Earlier this year, speaking at an investor conference, Huang reiterated that China should not have access to Nvidia's most advanced products. He also stressed that the United States should maintain technological superiority. “The first, the most and the best.”

However, he also argued that American companies should remain competitive internationally. “Simultaneously, all American companies should compete globally.” It remains unclear whether the memo prepared under Rubio's supervision last spring influenced the decision to leave Huang off the original invitation list for the subsequent China visit. At the time, Trump was considering allowing Nvidia to sell its most advanced Blackwell chips to China.

Huang and several other prominent technology executives supported the proposal, although many of Trump's advisers opposed it. The administration has not authorised the sale of Blackwell chips to China. However, the US government eventually permitted the sale of the less advanced H200 chips to approved buyers.