Technology: Taiwan Said to Suspect Nvidia Chips Smuggled to China Via Japan

Taiwan prosecutors suspect that three individuals successfully smuggled at least one shipment of Nvidia Corp. AI chips to China after first exporting them to Japan, people familiar with the matter said.

27. Mai 2026 um 15:50 Uhr / Mackenzie Hawkins und Debby Wu, Bloomberg

Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang speaks during Nvidia Live at CES 2026 ahead of the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, on January 5, 2026. Bild: Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images

The trio was detained last week by Taiwan's Keelung District Prosecutors Office for allegedly falsifying documents related to exports of Super Micro Computer Inc. servers containing advanced Nvidia chips, which the US has barred from sale to China without a license from Washington. The move marked the island democracy's first public crackdown on AI chip diversion after years of pressure from the US to take a more active role in curtailing China's tech access.

When Taiwan authorities apprehended the three defendants – who've now been officially detained – they also seized about 50 servers for which they accuse the trio of preparing fraudulent export documents. But at least one shipment had already gone through Taiwan customs, according to the people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity to speak about an ongoing criminal investigation.