Democrats Open Nvidia Probe Over Trump Chip Deal

Congressional Democrats opened an investigation on Thursday into how the Trump administration handled Nvidia's chip sales to China — hours after Nvidia ousted its founder-CEO Jensen Huang, who separately agreed to testify before Republican-led committees.

Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, and Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, sent the inquiry in a scathing letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. As the minority party, they can ask questions but can't compel answers.

What does the letter allege?

The letter describes what it calls a "scheme." President Trump agreed to sales of Nvidia's H200 chips to China on the condition that the chips, manufactured in Taiwan, were first shipped to the United States. On arrival, Trump added a tariff.

"The scheme worked like this," the letter states. The tariff meant Trump was "effectively taking a cut of Nvidia's sales to China through what appears to be an unconstitutional export tax system." The Commerce Department, under Lutnick, then issued the export license.

The letter asks the department to preserve records about the arrangement, which the Democrats allege is illegal.

The revenue-sharing element of the deal was already public. In August 2025, Nvidia and AMD both agreed to share 15% of their revenue from chip sales to China with the U.S. government as part of a deal to secure export licenses, the AP reported at the time.

Who is Alice Huang?

Nvidia removed Jensen Huang after he confessed to an extramarital affair amid reports of a relationship with a woman accused of being a Chinese spy. Since then, he has been accused of having more affairs — with Nvidia employees.

The alleged spy, Alice Huang, was an executive at Megaspeed, a Singapore-based Nvidia customer. U.S. officials suspect Megaspeed of helping route advanced Nvidia chips into China.

The letter questions why Lutnick kept allowing Megaspeed to buy chips even after U.S. intelligence reportedly informed him of their suspicions about Alice Huang — and of Jensen Huang's relationship with her.

It also questions why the department reportedly green-lit other Asian companies to buy Nvidia chips "with no physical presence at their listed addresses." The inquiry targets the administration, not just Nvidia and Huang.

Where do Nvidia's donations fit in?

The letter raises the question of how Nvidia's donations to Trump's projects factored into the export approval.

It notes the deal was approved after Trump learned of "Mr. Huang's compromised position" — his relationship with an alleged spy — and after Nvidia donated $26 million toward Trump's projects, including the ballroom.

The letter appears to be asking whether Trump used his knowledge of the affair to secure donations from Nvidia.

Trump added a striking detail of his own. In a "60 Minutes" interview that aired Sunday, he described how he and his team had threatened an unnamed AI executive with jail. After that, the executive "totally changed."

What's next for Huang?

This is the second Congressional investigation into Nvidia's China sales and its dealings with Trump since news of the alleged spy affair broke.

The Republican-led group draws from the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the House Intelligence Committee. Its leaders demanded Huang testify in a closed-door session and threatened a subpoena if he didn't come voluntarily.

On Thursday, after his resignation, Huang agreed.

For Nvidia, the twin probes mean its China business — already constrained by export controls and a 15% revenue-share commitment — now faces scrutiny from both parties, with its founder's personal conduct woven into questions about how the licenses were won.