President Donald Trump said he spoke to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang earlier Monday after Nvidia revealed late Sunday that it had launched an investigation into his extramarital affair with a woman alleged to be a Chinese spy.
Trump called Huang “to see if he’s feeling all right,” he said at an impromptu news briefing.
“He had absolutely no idea that the person in question was a spy,” Trump said of Huang, adding, “I really believe him.”
“We’ll look into it,” Trump said. “I know the FBI is looking into it, in terms of something else, and I think that he’ll be in good shape.”
The Justice Department is conducting a criminal investigation into Megaspeed, the Singaporean company suspected of smuggling Nvidia’s artificial intelligence chips into China, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Megaspeed is the data center company at the heart of the controversy involving Huang, who is said to have had a relationship with Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, the woman whom U.S. intelligence officials now believe to be a Chinese spy. Jensen Huang and Alice Huang are not related.
The investigation is focused on allegations that Megaspeed played a role in shipping Nvidia AI computer chips to customers in China, which would violate strict U.S. export controls on those chips.
In addition to Megaspeed, the probe is looking at people tied to the company, like Alice Huang, and at whether China recruited her to spy and assist the smuggling of the AI chips into China.
The investigation is being led by the department’s National Security Division, in conjunction with the FBI and the Bureau of Industry and Security, the investigative division of the Commerce Department.
On Sunday, the Nvidia board announced it was “initiating an independent investigation in light of recent reporting that founder and CEO Jensen Huang has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort.”
At the same time, Jensen Huang announced that he had been “unfaithful to my wife,” while also apologizing to Nvidia employees.
“I was amazed, because I view him as a very high-quality person,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “He’s an amazing guy. I hope there’s no problem.”
Trump indicated for the second time in as many days that he wanted Huang to remain the leader of Nvidia, the second-largest public company in the world. “I hope there’s no problem. If there is a problem, we’ll let you know about it. But I hope there’s no problem.”
Nvidia spokespeople did not immediately reply to a request for comment Monday following Trump’s remarks. Nvidia previously said Huang would remain CEO, despite the revelations.
The Justice Department also declined to comment on the matter.
Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Monday that “the so-called Chinese spy allegation is unsubstantiated. It is nothing but smears against China.”
Shares of Nvidia closed down 4.2% in Monday’s trading, bucking overall market momentum. The stock was the worst performer company in the Dow and the Nasdaq.
The news surrounding Nvidia and Huang has also drawn intense congressional scrutiny.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called Monday for “a full briefing” on the issues engulfing Nvidia. Jeffries is likely to be elected the next speaker of the House in January.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Jim Banks, R-Ind., also said in a joint statement that Congress should “take decisive action” regarding oversight of AI-linked companies.
The news from Nvidia and Huang “makes these national security concerns even more urgent and raises important questions NVIDIA must answer,” Warren and Banks wrote.
