Taiwanese prosecutors have detained an Nvidia employee and searched the company’s offices as part of an expanding investigation into the alleged smuggling of AI chips to China, reported Bloomberg citing people familiar with the matter. The case is linked to an ongoing probe into suspected exports of Nvidia’s AI accelerators in violation of US trade restrictions. As per the report, the latest action is believed to be the first known case of Taiwanese authorities taking legal action against an Nvidia employee as they widen their investigation into the suspected illegal movement of advanced AI hardware.
Nvidia employee detained after home and office searches
According to the report, Taiwanese investigators also searched the employee’s home and his desk at Nvidia’s Taipei office on July 24. The officials later asked a court for permission to detain the employee on allegations of forgery and breach of trust. The court approved the request, people cited in the report said.The identity of the employee has not been made public.Taiwan authorities previously detain three people suspecting Nvidia chips getting smuggled to China via JapanThe investigation follows an earlier round of detentions carried out by Taiwanese authorities in May. A previous Bloomberg report said that the Taiwan prosecutors suspect that three individuals successfully smuggled at least one shipment of Nvidia AI chips to China after first exporting them to Japan. The authorities then detained three people, including employees linked to Super Micro Computer Inc., an AI server reseller and a data centre operator, were accused of falsifying documents to export Nvidia AI chips to China despite US export restrictions.As part of their investigation, Taiwanese authorities are investigating whether advanced Nvidia AI accelerators were illegally shipped to China through other countries.
