Home / Business and Economy / US Charges 3 in Massive NVIDIA Chip Smuggling Ring
US Charges 3 in Massive NVIDIA Chip Smuggling Ring
21 Mar
Summary
- Three individuals charged for illegally exporting NVIDIA GPUs to China.
- Scheme involved fake orders and repackaging servers worth $2.5 billion.
- Past incidents show ongoing demand for smuggled NVIDIA AI chips.
Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York have indicted three individuals for orchestrating a scheme to illegally export NVIDIA GPUs to China. The charged parties, identified as Yih-Shyan Liaw, Ruei-Tsang Chang, and Ting-Wei Sun, allegedly circumvented U.S. export control laws.
Their alleged multi-step plan involved fabricating server orders from Southeast Asian companies, which were then discreetly diverted to China. This operation, spanning from 2024 to 2025, facilitated the illegal purchase of servers valued at $2.5 billion.
Super Micro Computer, the employer of two charged individuals and a contractor, has distanced itself from the accused, placing two employees on administrative leave and terminating its contract with the third. This incident follows other attempts to smuggle NVIDIA products, including a $1 billion worth of chips sold illegally after tightened controls in 2025 and a $50 million seizure in December 2025.
