This is the latest arrest in a months-long investigation conducted by Taiwanese authorities over suspicion of illegal exports.
A Taiwanese national, reported to be an Nvidia employee, was arrested in the country on Tuesday (28 July) on suspicion of illegally exporting high-end AI servers manufactured by Supermicro.
According to a translated statement from Taiwan’s Keelung district prosecutor’s office, the suspect, named Chang, is accused of crimes including making false entries in business documents.
Investigation into his activity began on 24 July, and authorities conducted searches of his residence and business. Chang was later brought in for questioning.
Authorities detained Chang after determining him to be a flight risk. Concerns were also raised around the suspect potentially destroying evidence or colluding with accomplices.
The prosecutor’s office did not mention Nvidia in its statement, although multiple news publications have reported that the Supermicro AI servers in question were equipped with Nvidia chips, which are subject to US export controls and cannot be transported into China.
Nvidia did not confirm whether the detainee was its employee. “We primarily sell our products to well-known partners, including OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), who help us ensure that all sales comply with US export control rules,” the company said in a statement to Reuters.
This is the latest arrest in a months-long investigation conducted by Taiwanese authorities over suspicion of illegal exports, and came amid a third round of searches. Earlier in July, Supermicro said that two of its workers at its Taiwan unit were arrested as part of the investigation into the alleged illegal exports, while a previous round saw three people being detained.
In March, the US government charged three people associated with Supermicro, including co-founder Yih-Shyan Liaw, over allegations of helping smuggle at least $2.5bn of AI technology into China.
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