Jensen Huang, chief executive of Nvidia Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Chris Coons (Del.) are asking the Trump administration to preserve all documents tied to Nvidia’s chip exports to China and CEO Jensen Huang’s affair with a suspected Chinese intelligence asset, the latest indication that lawmakers are gearing up for detailed investigations of the saga. The lawmakers made the request in a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House chief of staff Stephen Miller, asking the officials to confirm by Tuesday that they directed staff to keep all communications, records and other materials. The move comes as Nvidia’s board was preparing to oust Huang after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. Warren and Coons cited their roles as the incoming heads of the Banking and Foreign Relations Committees, which oversee investigations and bills impacting sensitive technology exports and national-security concerns. Document preservation letters are often an initial step before formal congressional investigations. The Nvidia-related push coincides with a slew of similar letters being sent to companies across industries and other organizations with close ties to the Trump administration. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Chris Coons (Del.) Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are calling for an investigation into chip export and policy decisions involving Huang, who directly lobbied the president to allow Nvidia to send chips directly to China while having an affair with a business partner suspected of working with Chinese intelligence. “This incident raises significant concerns about the federal government’s ability to effectively enforce our export controls and protect our national security,” Warren and Coons wrote in their letter. They asked for all security and intelligence materials involving the suspected Chinese intelligence operation and Huang; communications between Nvidia and the administration, including interactions with Huang and Trump; and documents related to chip export control policy. The broad requests highlight how lawmakers are seeking information about possible conflicts of interest as well as security violations. Huang developed a close relationship with Trump and frequently lobbied him directly about chip exports and AI policy matters. Warren and Coons are among the lawmakers who were critical of Huang over the past two years and the Trump administration’s decision to let Nvidia send chips directly to China and other countries posing security risks, such as the United Arab Emirates. Calls inside Washington for Huang to resign had been mounting early Wednesday, coming from Republican allies of the president, including Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, and Sen. Kevin Cramer (R., N.D.), a top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, which oversees export controls. Republicans in the House had called on Huang to brief lawmakers next week on his relationship with Alice Huang, a former top executive at Singapore-based data-center company Megaspeed International, and said they are open to using subpoenas to make him appear. They include Brian Mast (R., Fla.), chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, who said in an interview with The Journal that there have been longstanding concerns about Nvidia’s sales relationships with China and other countries. “Nvidia is often a huge part of this conversation,” Mast said. Mast and many of the same lawmakers are pushing for measures to restrict sending AI chips to China and other countries of concern. “In China, Jensen Huang is referred to as ‘Black Jacket’ for the motorcycle jacket he typically wears. I sincerely hope Congress isn’t going to have to make him switch to prison pinstripes and that we do not find out that his mistress being a Chinese spy led to violation of U.S. espionage or export control law,” said Rep. Michael Baumgartner (R., Wash.), who sponsored one of the export bills.
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