⚖️ Jensen Huang faces subpoena threat from House China committee

Congress is now talking about a subpoena. Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, Nov 11 (its story is stamped 4:03 PM UTC), that Rep. John Moolenaar, a Republican who chairs a House China committee, said Congress is prepared to subpoena Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang over his affair with an alleged Chinese spy. Moolenaar said Huang has until the end of the day Wednesday to respond to an earlier request to appear for a closed-door briefing.

Who says what

The subpoena threat rests on Bloomberg's account of Moolenaar's remarks. The pack holds no subpoena document, so nothing has been issued as far as the reports read show.

The underlying allegation comes from other outlets. The New York Times reported that Alice Huang, an executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed and no relation to Jensen Huang, was suspected of spying for China, per BBC News. The Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that US officials wrote a memo saying Huang had a romantic relationship with her. Al Jazeera reports that Huang confirmed an intimate relationship. Business Insider notes his memo did not say with whom.

Beijing rejects the spy claim. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said it is "unsubstantiated" and "nothing but smears against China", per NBC News.

The response

Huang's most recent words on record are in the staff email. "I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did," he wrote, per NBC News. He added that he supports the board's investigation and will cooperate fully, per BBC News. No public reply to Moolenaar's Wednesday deadline was found in the reports read.

Nvidia's board said it has "no reason to believe that either national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised", per its statement quoted by NBC News. Alice Huang could not be reached for comment, per the Financial Times. Megaspeed denied last year that it illicitly transferred chips, per the Boston Globe.

What happens next

Axios reported that the Republican chairmen who asked for the briefing gave Huang a Nov. 11 deadline to set a date. Al Jazeera reports that House Republicans John Moolenaar, Brian Mast and Rick Crawford called on him to appear on November 18. On the Senate side, Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat who chairs the foreign relations committee from January, promised an investigation, per the Financial Times.

The reports read do not show a formal federal probe opened or a lawmaker's call for Huang's resignation. Whether Huang agrees to a date, or a subpoena follows, is not yet known.

Backstory

This is the latest turn in a story we have followed. Earlier: "⚖️ Nvidia hires Cuomo investigator Joon Kim to probe Jensen Huang", "🤖 Nvidia board opens Jensen Huang probe; shares seen 4% lower", "🤖 Congress presses Nvidia's Jensen Huang over Megaspeed claims" and "⚖️ Nvidia, Jensen Huang face shareholder suit over Megaspeed". Also on file: "🧾 Jensen Huang trends as Nvidia files five Form 4s since Sept."

Al Jazeera, citing the New York Times, says Megaspeed bought some $4.8bn of equipment from Nvidia. NBC News reported Nvidia shares fell more than 4% after the board announcement, and that President Trump called Huang a "fine person" who should remain CEO.

As of Nov 11, 11:52 AM ET, the confirmed part is narrow. Bloomberg reports Moolenaar said Congress is prepared to subpoena Huang and set a Wednesday deadline for a reply on the briefing. Huang's apology and the board investigation are on record. Pending: any reply from Huang, any subpoena, the Nov 18 date Al Jazeera reports, and any formal federal probe or resignation call.