'Did Nothing, Accepted $25M Donation': Dems Demand Answers From Trump Over Jensen Huang's Alleged 'Chinese Spy' Link

Washington: United States Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has launched a scathing attack on President Donald Trump, demanding immediate accountability over what he termed a gross "failure to protect national security" after alleging that Trump was briefed over a year ago about NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang's purported relationship with an alleged Chinese spy but chose to do nothing.   

In a sharply worded post shared on X, the Senate Democrat said, "Trump was briefed over A YEAR AGO on Nvidia’s CEO having an affair with a Chinese spy. He did nothing about it. Instead, Trump took him to Beijing, took his advice to give China access to our AI chips, & accepted a $25M donation from Nvidia." 

Demanding immediate accountability from the White House, Schumer added, "We need answers immediately on Trump’s failure to protect our national security." 

Schumer’s accusations come shortly after President Trump publicly addressed the controversy surrounding the NVIDIA chief. 

Trump had defended Huang as an "amazing guy" and a "very high-quality person," praising his creation of the cutting-edge Blackwell chip. While Trump said he hoped there was "no problem" regarding national security, he expressed personal sympathy for the executive, noting that Huang and his family were "suffering greatly" from the fallout. 

Meanwhile, in a fresh statement, the NVIDIA board said: The independent members of the NVIDIA Board have retained former acting U.S. Attorney of the Southern District of New York Joon H. Kim and his firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct a thorough and independent investigation as was announced on Sunday. 

Earlier in the day, Democratic members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, specifically Gabe Amo of Rhode Island, Gregory W. Meeks of New York and Sydney Kamlager-Dove of California, demanded that US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick address inquiries regarding the Trump administration’s export policies concerning advanced artificial intelligence computer chips, amid mounting concerns over operations by Beijing's intelligence apparatus, as reported by The New York Times. 

In their communication, the lawmakers challenged the Commerce Department regarding authorisations permitting advanced processor shipments overseas. 

“You cannot claim to be protecting American leadership in artificial intelligence while allowing our most advanced technology to reach a strategic competitor,” the lawmakers wrote. 

“National security must come before corporate sales targets.” 

As noted in recent coverage by The NYT, Alice Huang, a former executive at the Singapore-headquartered data centre firm Megaspeed, was engaged by Chinese intelligence. 

Megaspeed procured Nvidia hardware and established data facilities across Southeast Asia that served mainland Chinese enterprises, including Alibaba. 

Additional reporting published by The NYT highlighted that the Commerce Department cleared licensing approvals for dispatching sophisticated AI hardware to Beijing-affiliated entities, military contractors and blacklisted firms. 

“Allowing China to obtain advanced US AI chips puts our national security at risk,” the lawmakers wrote. “These chips power the computing capabilities that will shape the future of artificial intelligence, military modernisation and economic competition.” 

Nvidia's board announced an inquiry into the connection between Alice Huang and the company's chief executive. 

Jensen Huang released a video address admitting to the affair while confirming that he would remain at the helm during the ongoing probe. 

Parallel legislative scrutiny is intensifying as Republicans across three congressional panels summoned Jensen Huang for a closed-door deposition to examine potential proprietary leaks and his associations with Alice Huang, a development further detailed in reports by The NYT. 

Individuals briefed on intelligence matters indicated that Alice Huang operated on behalf of China’s Ministry of State Security with instructions to gather intelligence regarding Nvidia’s cutting-edge AI architecture and facilitate technology acquisition for Beijing. 

The US government has prohibited shipments of Nvidia's most powerful hardware to China, a restriction Jensen Huang has openly contested, as tracked through ongoing investigations cited by The NYT.