Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during a November 5, 2026 Situation Room meeting over Commerce's failure to place Singaporean firm Megaspeed on the national security entity list. Megaspeed purchased over $4 billion in Nvidia chips despite U.S. restrictions enacted in 2022 and allegations of illegal diversion to China. Tensions escalated after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admitted to an affair with Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, a suspected Chinese spy.
Situation Room clash over Megaspeed
- ▪A U.S. Commerce Department spokeswoman denied that the November 5, 2026 Situation Room conversation between Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick took place
- ▪During a White House Situation Room meeting on November 5, 2026, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick responded to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's inquiry regarding Megaspeed by stating he would look into the matter
- ▪U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during a White House Situation Room meeting on November 5, 2026, over Commerce's failure to place Megaspeed on the U.S. entity list
Commerce Department handling of Megaspeed
- ▪U.S. Commerce Undersecretary Jeff Kessler abruptly halted an investigation into Megaspeed following intervention by Nvidia, according to a report by The New York Times
- ▪The Financial Times reported that the U.S. Commerce Department delayed efforts to blacklist Megaspeed despite pressure from several U.S. government agencies
- ▪U.S. Commerce Undersecretary Jeff Kessler deferred warnings about Megaspeed to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, stating that adding companies to the entity list was a decision for the secretary
Allegations involving Megaspeed and Alice Huang
- ▪Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang admitted to having an affair with Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, whom U.S. intelligence identified as a spy for China's Ministry of State Security
- ▪China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs described allegations that Megaspeed executive Alice Huang was a Chinese spy as groundless speculation intended to malign China
- ▪Megaspeed denied allegations of illegally diverting U.S. microchips to China, stating that it operates as a compliant and legal company
Circumvention of U.S. chip restrictions
- ▪Technology firms including Megaspeed circumvented U.S. chip restrictions by constructing Southeast Asian data centers to serve clients based in China
- ▪The U.S. government has prohibited direct sales of advanced artificial intelligence semiconductors to China since late 2022
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