US Commerce delays blacklisting Nvidia-linked Megaspeed

The US Commerce Department is holding off on adding Megaspeed to its entity list, even though several other federal agencies want the Singapore-based company blacklisted. Megaspeed is the company linked to Alice Huang, an alleged Chinese spy who had an affair with Nvidia chief Jensen Huang. The Financial Times reported on Tuesday, November 10, that the company was left off the list. The delay adds to questions about how Washington has handled a company suspected of moving restricted Nvidia AI chips to China.ft.com

Agencies push, Commerce waits

Citing sources, the FT said the Pentagon and the State, Energy and Treasury departments have all urged that Megaspeed be added to the list of China-connected groups, according to an account of the report by TeleTrader's Breaking The News. For two months, Commerce has put off adding any new entities, saying it needs more information about some businesses in the pending package. It is unclear whether Megaspeed is part of that package, the same report said.breakingthenews.net

The New York Times ↗ 0.57% separately reported that Commerce has not added any company to the entity list in more than a year, the longest such gap in 18 years, according to The Herald Business. By Yahoo Finance's count, the department added 170 names in 2025 and none since October 9, 2025. Companies on the list need a US license to buy American technology.mbiz.heraldcorp.com+1

A probe that changed hands

The FT report came a day after the Times said Commerce investigators had stopped their Megaspeed inquiry after Nvidia general counsel Tim Teter emailed them in August 2025. In that email he said senior official Jeff Kessler had approved the contact. The case then moved to the Justice Department, which is now running a criminal investigation, TNW reported. According to the Times, a Commerce spokesman said the department handled the case strictly by the book. Bloomberg reported that Nvidia's chip tallies given to the government undercounted sales to Megaspeed through hardware partners by 50,000 units, The Business Times said.businesstimes.com.sg+1

Megaspeed has built data centers across Southeast Asia for Chinese clients including Alibaba ↘ 2.52%, according to Investing.com. The company has flatly denied diverting chips. It says inspections by Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security, Malaysian authorities and Nvidia found no violations, CNBC reported.cnbc.com+1

Pressure on Nvidia grows

Nvidia's board has opened an independent investigation into Jensen Huang, who acknowledged the affair in a memo to staff, CNBC reported. The board has hired Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to lead the investigation. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast said he is ready to subpoena Huang if he does not respond by November 11 to a request for a closed-door briefing, Breaking The News reported. China has called the spy allegations "baseless and purely slanderous smears," ABC7 reported.abc7chicago.com+2