The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York has charged three people associated with AI server maker Super Micro Computer of helping smuggle at least $2.5 billion of American AI technology to China. Found in violation of export laws, the US Justice Department had charged Yih-Shyan Liaw, Ruei-Tsang Chang, and Ting-Wei Sun in an indictment unsealed in federal court in Manhattan on March 19. It alleges the trio of a complex scheme to send US-made servers to other countries in Southeast Asia through Taiwan. There, these servers were swapped into unmarked boxes and sent onward to China, it claimed. Yih-Shyan Liaw co-founded Super Micro in 1993, and joined its board of directors in 2023. Ruei-Tsang Chang was a sales manager in the Taiwan office of Super Micro, while Ting-Wei Sun was a contractor to the company.According to a report by news agency Reuters, US officials did not name which chips were involved in the alleged scheme, but are alleged to be Nvidia AI chips. In a statement quoted by Reuters, Nvidia said that “strict compliance” with export laws is a top priority. “We continue to work closely with our customers and the government on compliance programs as export regulations have expanded,” an Nvidia spokesperson told the agency, adding “Unlawful diversion of controlled U.S. computers to China is a losing proposition across the board—NVIDIA does not provide any service or support for such systems, and the enforcement mechanisms are rigorous and effective.”
Charges against the three linked to Super Micro Computer
The US has restricted exports of advanced AI chips to China since 2022. US officials accuse Liaw, Chang and Sun of concealing their activity from both the US-based makers of servers and US export officials. It claims that the three took extensive measures like using hair dryers to remove labels and serial numbers from the real machines, and placing them on dummy machines left. These were later shipped to China.
Super Micro Computer’s statement
While the US indictment does not name Super Micro Computer, the company said it has placed the employees on leave and ended its relationship with the contractor.“The conduct by these individuals alleged in the indictment is a contravention of the Company’s policies and compliance controls, including efforts to circumvent applicable export control laws and regulations,” according to a statement quoted by CNBC in its report. “Supermicro maintains a robust compliance program and is committed to full adherence to all applicable U.S. export and re-export control laws and regulations.”
