"The operation reveals a broader strategy: if you can't build it, take it. With a blend of state-run espionage and corporate infiltration, China has turned technology acquisition into an art form. Their 'all-of-the-above' approach has allowed their AI sector to grow even as export bans tighten. By sourcing the hardware from elsewhere, Beijing has made the lack of domestic chip manufacture moot."
"The same month that prosecutors announced the NVIDIA chip smuggling charges, the Department of Justice filed a superseding indictment against Linwei Ding, a former Google software engineer accused of stealing over 1,000 confidential files containing trade secrets related to Google's AI infrastructure. According to the indictment, Ding uploaded the files to his personal cloud account between May 2022 and May 2023 while secretly working for two China-based technology companies."
Hao Global and founder Alan Hao Hsu pleaded guilty on October 10, 2025, for participating in smuggling and unlawful export activities involving Nvidia H100 and H200 GPUs. Prosecutors say at least $160 million in GPUs were exported or attempted exported between October 2024 and May 2025. Investigators trace funding through more than $50 million in wire transfers from China, and U.S. authorities seized over $50 million in Nvidia hardware and cash tied to the broader network. The operation exemplifies a broader technology-acquisition strategy combining state-sponsored espionage and corporate infiltration. A related DOJ indictment alleges a former Google engineer stole proprietary AI infrastructure files for China-based companies.
Read at The Cipher Brief
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