Huida CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. (Reuters)
[Financial Channel/Comprehensive Report] Billionaire Huida CEO Jen-Hsun Huang allegedly has a relationship with a Chinese businesswoman suspected of spying for Beijing, according to an explosive U.S. intelligence memo. The British media "Daily Mail" reported on Saturday (7th) that this incident has triggered concerns that this may be a "honey trap" by China against one of the most powerful technology executives in the United States.
According to reports, 63-year-old Huang Jen-Hsun is suspected of developing a relationship with Huang Le (transliteration, also known as Alice Huang), a former senior executive of Singaporean company Megaspeed. U.S. intelligence officials believe the woman was recruited by China's Ministry of State Security, Beijing's main civilian spy agency, to gather information about Huang and potentially influence his decision-making.
The allegations emerged in a new report in the Financial Times, which revealed that U.S. officials prepared a confidential memo detailing the alleged relationship earlier this year. The document, based on intelligence gathered by U.S. agencies, was circulated among a small group of senior government officials shortly before President Trump visited Beijing in May for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
This revelation goes further than an earlier report by The New York Times. The New York Times previously disclosed that Huang Renxun and Huang Le had established a "close relationship."
The Financial Times subsequently reported that the U.S. government considered the relationship to be very close and described the relationship as a "romantic relationship," further fueling concerns that Huida's CEO was a target of Chinese intelligence operations.
It is unclear whether U.S. intelligence services believe Huang knew the woman (Huang Le) was allegedly working in Beijing, or whether any sensitive information was leaked.
Huang has not been accused of knowingly assisting Chinese intelligence agencies, and his relationship with Chinese intelligence agencies has not been independently confirmed.
Huida has previously refuted claims that Huang Renxun's relationship with Huang Le was unusual. A Huida spokesperson previously told the Daily Mail: "Jensen's interaction with Ms. Huang was not unusual nor unexpected." "Meeting with customers is part of a CEO's job; Jensen speaks to thousands of client executives every year."
In June 2024, Huang Renxun and Huang Le were photographed together in a bar in Taipei. At that time, Huang Renxun was wearing his iconic black leather jacket and enjoying whiskey with other technology executives.
The photos were later shared on LinkedIn by technology company NetThunder. According to reports, in May 2025, the two were seen together again, leaving a restaurant in Taipei after dining. The dinner was also attended by artificial intelligence suppliers. According to the "Times" report, Huang Renxun had been waiting outside while Huida's CEO was talking to reporters outside.
Because Huang has extraordinary influence on the global artificial intelligence industry and has an unusually close relationship with President Trump, this so-called relationship has aroused the vigilance of U.S. officials. Huida's market value exceeds US$5 trillion, and the advanced processors it produces have become essential equipment in the artificial intelligence industry. Its technology is also at the center of Washington's growing battle to deny China access to chips that could accelerate Beijing's military development.
Huang Renxun has repeatedly lobbied Trump to relax restrictions on the sale of Huida's advanced processors in China. He believes that allowing American companies to compete in the Chinese market will help fight against domestic competitors such as Huawei. He personally pressured the president to allow exports of Huida's powerful H200 chips, despite concerns from national security officials. The Trump administration later approved some sales with restrictions, although shipments were briefly stalled.
According to the Times report, Chinese intelligence agencies are suspected of recruiting Huang Le to learn more about U.S. artificial intelligence technology and possibly influence Huida's stance on supplying advanced chips to China.
Huang Le's employer, Megaspeed, was spun off from a Chinese gaming company in 2023 and subsequently expanded into the lucrative AI data center operation business. The company has come under scrutiny for allegedly violating U.S. export restrictions by shipping advanced Huida processors to China.
However, Huida previously investigated the allegations and said it found no evidence of wrongdoing. A Huida spokesperson also insisted that regional cloud customers can only receive ordinary business messages and cannot receive sensitive company secrets or information related to U.S. national security.
The intelligence findings have reportedly sparked calls for explanations on Capitol Hill. Republican Representatives Brian Mast, John Mullenar and Rick Crawford, who chair three important House committees respectively, have asked Huang to participate in a closed-door briefing on November 18. Lawmakers want to question Huang about his interactions with Huang Le and the steps Huida took to protect itself from foreign espionage.
Previously, the New York Times revealed that U.S. intelligence agencies had monitored Huang Le. According to reports, Trump was briefed last year on Huang Le’s alleged activities and his relationship with Huida’s boss, but he chose not to get involved.
Despite intelligence concerns, Huang has maintained extremely close ties with Trump. In May of this year, when Trump was preparing to go to Beijing, Huang Jen-Hsun immediately flew to Alaska after receiving a call from Trump, and boarded Air Force One during the stopover to accompany Trump on his visit to China.
