Nvidia founder Jensen Huang steps down amid Singapore chip trade scandal
The resignation of Jensen Huang follows allegations involving a Singaporean data centre company and suspected illicit semiconductor trade with China.
Nvidia founder Jensen Huang stepped down from the US chip giant on Thursday after admitting to an affair, according to a BBC News report. Huang was reportedly involved with Alice Huang, who ran the Singaporean data centre company Megaspeed, a major buyer of Nvidia chips.
The scandal has highlighted concerns regarding Singapore's role as a hub for the trade of high-end semiconductor chips. While Singapore was Nvidia's second-largest billing centre globally last year, less than 1 per cent of its earnings were for chips that actually entered the country.
Singapore authorities said they have been investigating since February 2025 whether Megaspeed and other firms made false declarations about data servers. The companies reportedly claimed equipment would go to Malaysia, but authorities suspect the final destinations were elsewhere.
The government stated it sought assistance from US authorities regarding Supermicro, a US-based company that was reportedly supplying servers to Megaspeed, but received limited information. Authorities also investigated Alice Huang for possible roles in suspected fraud but found insufficient evidence of crime.
Megaspeed has maintained it acted lawfully and said on Thursday that it welcomes government scrutiny and is committed to working with the US government. Singapore has previously charged four companies and five individuals for various offences, including fraud, following concerns regarding Chinese AI company DeepSeek.