Nvidia worker among 9 charged in Taiwan chip smuggling case
Summary
Nine people in Taiwan, including a Nvidia worker, were charged on Monday over the illegal export of artificial intelligence servers to China. Taiwanese prosecutors said the case involved 74 Super Micro Computer servers containing advanced Nvidia chips and alleged violations of U.S. export controls. Eight defendants were charged with breach of trust and forging documents, while three were also charged with embezzlement. Prosecutors said some servers were transhipped through Indonesia and Japan, and 56 more were seized at Taiwan’s border.
Key Facts
- The Keelung District Prosecutors Office said 74 servers containing Nvidia chips were smuggled to China, with 50 transhipped through Indonesia, eight sent via Japan, and the rest exported directly.
- An additional 56 servers were seized at Taiwan’s border.
- The nine accused include two Super Micro employees, one Nvidia employee, one Albatron Technology employee, and one Chief Telecom employee.
- Prosecutors sought sentences of up to five years in jail for seven defendants they said were driven by the pursuit of exorbitant profits.
- The United States restricts exports to China of advanced chips used for artificial intelligence systems, but Taiwanese prosecutors said that conduct is not a criminal offence in Taiwan.
Nvidia logo is seen in this illustration photo created June 11. Reuters-Yonhap
TAIPEI — Nine people in Taiwan, including a Nvidia worker, were charged on Monday over the illegal export of artificial intelligence servers to China, Taiwanese prosecutors said.
The indictments follow an investigation into the shipment of "high-end" AI servers made by Nasdaq-listed Super Micro Computer and containing advanced Nvidia chips to China in violation of U.S. export controls.
Eight of the nine defendants were charged with breach of trust and forging documents to smuggle 74 servers containing Nvidia chips to China, Keelung District Prosecutors Office said in a statement.
Of those servers, 50 were transhipped through Indonesia, eight were sent via Japan and the rest were exported directly to China. An additional 56 servers were seized at Taiwan's border, the statement said.
Three of the defendants have been charged with embezzlement.
The United States restricts exports to China of the most cutting-edge silicon chips used to power artificial intelligence systems, designed by industry leader Nvidia.
But it is not a criminal offence in Taiwan — a situation lawmakers and experts say needs to change — with Taiwanese prosecutors relying on other laws to go after offenders.
The nine accused include two employees from Super Micro and one from Nvidia as well as one from Taiwan-listed Albatron Technology and another from Chief Telecom, prosecutors said.
Neither Nvidia nor Super Micro immediately responded to AFP's request for comment.
Prosecutors said they were seeking sentences of up to five years in jail for seven defendants who were "driven by the pursuit of exorbitant profits" to collude in the illegal export of the servers.
"This not only increased corporate compliance costs but also severely damaged the nation's international image," the prosecutors said.
They were seeking more lenient sentences for the other two defendants who had confessed to all charges and cooperated with the investigation.
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