U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent accuses Commerce Secretary Lutnick of failing to add Nvidia partner Megaspeed to the Entity List
Bessent Blames Lutnick for Not Blacklisting Nvidia Partner Megaspeed
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent said on Friday that the Treasury Department, the Department of Defense, the State Department, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative had for months supported adding Singapore-based company Megaspeed to the Commerce Department's Entity List, but the Commerce Department, which is responsible for the matter, did not act. According to media reports this week, Commerce Secretary Lutnick delayed the Trump administration's crackdown on companies suspected of transshipping Nvidia chips to China; Reuters reported that senior White House officials are discussing whether to let Lutnick leave. Megaspeed drew attention after reports that former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang had an affair with former Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, and U.S. authorities suspect Huang is a Chinese spy. Bessent also said the government is working to plug "leaks" in the chip export system and questioned whether Nvidia has adequately vetted its partners and whether it sold to obvious shell pass-through companies.
Bessent says the Treasury Department and three other departments supported adding Megaspeed to the Entity List for months while the Commerce Department did not act, showing decision-making divisions within U.S. AI chip export controls.