Nvidia Chips Found in Shadow Trade Fueling Global Smuggling Network
An investigation into AI chip smuggling has exposed Nvidia's blind spots in export controls. A blurry surveillance photo released by US prosecutors shows a woman using a hair dryer to peel serial stickers off computer server packages, part of a brazen scheme to bypass export rules and sneak Nvidia processors to China.
The case is one of many that have come to light in the past year, with government officials saying that Washington's controls have instead spawned a sprawling shadow trade. The crackdown has stretched from a seized Singapore mega-mansion to intercepted cargo in Taiwan.
Nvidia's presence in China was meant to be eliminated by US export controls, but it seems the opposite is true. The company's chips are being rerouted through Southeast Asia and other routes, violating national security rules.