Taiwanese prosecutors have filed criminal charges against nine individuals, including an Nvidia employee and two former Super Micro employees, for allegedly smuggling high-end artificial intelligence servers into mainland China. The case marks another escalation in the geopolitical and technological rivalry between Washington and Beijing over advanced computing hardware.
According to the prosecution, the illicit operation successfully delivered 74 high-end servers to China using various international routes. Specifically, 50 servers were routed through Indonesia, 16 were shipped directly to China, and eight were sent first to Japan and then to Hong Kong before reaching their final destination in mainland China. An additional attempt to smuggle 56 servers failed, and those units remain in Taiwan.
Prosecutors are seeking the maximum sentence of five years in prison for four of the nine defendants. Among them is an Nvidia manager identified by the family name Chang, who has been described as the "key figure" behind the scheme. Prosecutors allege that Chang was responsible for "authorizing the release of the B300 GPUs" and noted that he "demonstrated a clearly poor attitude following the offense." To bypass export restrictions, some of the defendants set up a front company in Japan to facilitate the transfer of eight servers, while others allegedly created fake websites and falsified documentation.
The case highlights the intense global competition over AI infrastructure, particularly advanced semiconductors, which are primarily manufactured in Taiwan. The U.S. government began placing restrictions on Nvidia's advanced chip exports to China in 2022 and has progressively tightened those rules. In April 2025, Washington mandated export licenses for Nvidia's H20 chips to China, though it permitted some sales to resume later that year.
In response to the charges, Nvidia spokesperson Patrick Rutherford stated in a written response, "We will work with the Taiwan authorities to help them resolve the allegations as quickly as possible." Meanwhile, Super Micro released a statement confirming that the arrests of its two former employees followed its cooperation with Taiwanese investigators. The company added that it will continue working to "enhance its robust export compliance program to protect American innovation."
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