Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is facing intense scrutiny over his professional ties to Chinese firms and his close relationship with Nvidia’s former CEO Jensen Huang, as critics question whether these connections hampered federal oversight of billions of dollars in AI chip sales.
Questions regarding potential conflicts of interest have intensified following the resignation of Jensen Huang. His departure followed reports of multiple affairs, including a relationship with Alice Huang—no relation to the former CEO—whom U.S. officials believe is a Chinese intelligence asset.
Alice Huang operated Megaspeed International, a Singapore-based firm that became a major purchaser of Nvidia technology and is suspected of funneling advanced AI chips to Chinese entities in violation of U.S. export bans, CBS News reported.
The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security opened an investigation into Nvidia’s sales to Megaspeed in 2024. However, according to The New York Times, that probe was subsequently transferred to the Department of Justice. The Justice Department has declined to comment on the status of the investigation.
Chris McGuire, a China and emerging technology expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, characterized the situation as a failure of regulatory oversight. "The real scandal here is the lack of enforcement of export controls," McGuire told CBS News. "Either Lutnick doesn’t know how to do his job or he is protecting Huang."
Commerce Department faces pressure over export control loopholes
The Commerce Department has not added any new companies to its Entity List—a key tool for restricting foreign access to sensitive U.S. technology—since October 2025. Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted Lutnick regarding the department’s failure to place Megaspeed on the list, according to Axios.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, issued a formal demand on Thursday for Lutnick and his deputy, Jeffrey Kessler, to explain the failure to close these export control loopholes. Kessler, who served as the undersecretary overseeing the Megaspeed probe, was urged by Warren to "act today to ensure our advanced technology is not fueling China’s military."
Lutnick's financial background draws scrutiny
Lutnick’s background as a financier has drawn consistent attention since his nomination. Before his confirmation in February 2025, Lutnick served as chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, which held roughly $1.2 billion in Nvidia stock at the time of his transition. While Lutnick resigned from his corporate leadership roles upon taking office, his family’s wealth has doubled to $7.3 billion, largely driven by an indirect stake in the cryptocurrency firm Tether.
Concerns regarding his history with Chinese state-linked enterprises were raised during his Senate confirmation hearing. Senators questioned his previous oversight of BGC Group, which maintained a 33% stake in a joint venture with China Credit Trust, a firm whose largest shareholder is the state-owned China People’s Insurance Company.
Kathleen Clark, a law professor and ethics expert at Washington University in St. Louis, suggested that the accumulation of these factors warrants a formal review. "Can we be confident that he is looking out for the public interest?" Clark told CBS News. "What’s going on with him raises a lot of red flags."
The Relationship with Nvidia
The personal rapport between Lutnick and the former Nvidia CEO has also become a focal point for investigators. In a podcast appearance with Joe Rogan, Jensen Huang recounted that Lutnick had offered him direct access to the administration, telling him, "Whenever you need access to the president, the administration, you call us."
Following a $1 million-per-person dinner at Mar-a-Lago in April 2025, Huang successfully lobbied President Trump to lift restrictions on the sale of less advanced H20 chips to China. These restrictions were removed in July 2025. The Commerce Department did not respond to requests for comment regarding the oversight of these exports.
