Nvidia manager among nine charged in alleged plot to smuggle AI servers into China

Taiwan's prosecutors have brought formal charges against nine suspects, including a senior manager from Nvidia and two Supermicro employees working in the country, over their alleged involvement in a scheme to unlawfully ship high-performance AI servers to China by forging paperwork to conceal the transactions from US authorities.

The Charges and Investigation#

Prosecutors in Keelung announced the indictments on Monday, stating the accused face charges of breach of trust and document forgery, though they did not publicly identify the suspects. A tenth individual connected to the case remains at large, wanted for allegedly misappropriating funds from a distributor company that participated in channeling restricted Nvidia equipment to China.

The investigation stems from heightened US restrictions on semiconductor exports that have been in place since 2022, designed to maintain America's technological advantage in artificial intelligence development by limiting China's access to cutting-edge chips.

The Scheme and Scope#

Investigators uncovered an operation in which co-conspirators attempted to create falsified documentation claiming that 130 of Nvidia's B300 servers were installed and operational at a facility in Taiwan. In reality, 74 of those servers were successfully exported to customers in China, while another 56 units intended for China were intercepted by Taiwanese customs after officials spotted irregularities in the shipment records.

Taiwan launched its investigation following the March arrest of Supermicro co-founder Wally Liaw by US authorities, who accused him of funneling approximately $2.5 billion in restricted AI servers to China since 2024.

Corporate Response#

Supermicro stated that it is actively cooperating with Taiwanese investigators. The company emphasized its commitment to protecting its technology and working with authorities to strengthen oversight of supply chains and enforce export restrictions.

Neither Supermicro nor Nvidia responded to requests for additional comment on the indictments.