TAIPEI, Taiwan — TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwanese prosecutors on Monday charged nine individuals, including an Nvidia employee and two former Super Micro staff, with illegally exporting high‑end AI servers to mainland China. The case intensifies the ongoing technology rivalry between China and the United States.
AI infrastructure, which relies on advanced semiconductors largely fabricated in Taiwan, has become a focal point of competition between the United States and China. Washington began restricting Nvidia’s exports of cutting‑edge chips to China in 2022 and tightened those controls in subsequent years. In April 2025, the U.S. required licenses for shipments of Nvidia’s H20 chips to China, later permitting some sales to resume.
Under the export regime, any sale by Nvidia of high‑end AI servers—computer systems that house the chips powering AI applications—must undergo a rigorous review process, according to a document released by the Keelung District Prosecutors’ office. The document also stipulates that purchases exceeding eight high‑end AI servers require company personnel to conduct on‑site client verification.
The servers in question were B300 graphics processing units, which are prohibited from sale to China.
“We will work with the Taiwan authorities to help them resolve the allegations as quickly as possible,” said Nvidia spokesperson Patrick Rutherford in a written statement.
Super Micro indicated that the arrests of two former employees stemmed from its cooperation with Taiwanese investigators and pledged to continue strengthening its export‑compliance program to safeguard American innovation.
Prosecutors reported that 74 servers successfully reached China: 50 were routed through Indonesia, 16 were delivered directly, and eight were first sent to Japan before transiting to Hong Kong and then mainland China.
Another shipment involving 56 servers failed and remains in Taiwan, according to the prosecutor’s office.
The prosecution is seeking the maximum five‑year prison terms for four of the nine defendants, including an Nvidia manager identified only by his surname, Chang. Chang was described as the “key figure” responsible for authorizing the release of the B300 GPUs and was noted for displaying a “clearly poor attitude” following the offense.
Some defendants allegedly established a Japanese front company to facilitate the transfer of eight servers, and others created fake websites and falsified information to circumvent export restrictions.
