Alleged Chinese spy Alice Huang may have simultaneously owned stakes in businesses in China that benefited Nvidia's biggest competitor in China, Huawei, while she was in business with Nvidia and also reportedly having a romantic affair with its ousted CEO Jensen Huang.
The connection between Alice Huang and Huawei was first discovered by analysts at private intelligence firm Tesari. The firm exclusively shared its findings with CNBC. Tesari provides intelligence research to private companies and the U.S. government.
This previously unreported entanglement was first uncovered by the research firm which uses artificial intelligence to collect evidence and specializes in national security investigations around the world. The connections may raise questions about Alice Huang's intent and conduct in her relationship with the CEO and whether Jensen Huang knew his romantic partner was closely connected with his competition. Jensen Huang has acknowledged having an affair, though the precise timing of his relationship with Alice Huang is unknown.
The mysterious saga of Alice Huang involves a tangle of interlocking corporations and transactions that show her connection to entities that ultimately provided computing power to Huawei in China.
Huawei is known as a Chinese government "state champion" in the technology and telecommunications sectors, meaning it receives enormous financial support from the government in Beijing so it can lower prices and undercut global competitors. It is considered a key part of the Chinese government's push for global technical dominance and is closely linked to the Chinese Communist Party.