[Nvidia Knows Huang Le Under Investigation Early, Legal Executives Contacted US Department of Commerce Directly, Investigation Subsequently Restricted] Beating AI News reports that Nvidia knew as early as 2025 that Huang Le had been detained by Singapore police and proactively inquired about the situation with senior officials at the US Department of Commerce. Weeks later, US officials investigating Megaspeed, an affiliated company, for alleged chip smuggling, began facing strict restrictions. By the end of the year, the Department of Commerce was ordered to halt its investigation. In late summer 2025, Nvidia's General Counsel, Tim Teter, directly called Jeffrey Kessler, Deputy Secretary of Commerce, to inquire whether the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), which he oversaw, had participated in the Singapore police's detention of Huang Le. At that time, Huang Le had already been questioned by Singapore police and restricted from leaving the country, and the US Department of Commerce was also investigating whether Megaspeed had illegally transshipped Nvidia's AI chips. A few weeks after this call, BIS investigators received a new requirement: to contact Nvidia, they must first go through Kessler or obtain his approval. During the external investigation, even the names of Megaspeed and its Malaysian subsidiary could not be mentioned. Teter later requested a direct meeting with investigators, but was refused. He then invoked the name of their superior, Kessler, claiming he had already obtained permission and didn't understand why he was being refused. Investigators, fearing Nvidia would use its high-level connections to influence the investigation, forwarded the email to Kessler. Kessler did not request his subordinates to cooperate with Nvidia, only replying: "Strictly follow regulations." In late 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice requested the Department of Commerce to halt the investigation and take over the criminal investigation. Sources involved in the investigation revealed that the BIS already possessed sufficient evidence to continue the investigation but was forced to stop. Some officials considered this sudden transfer of the case highly unusual. Nvidia responded that the company contacted the U.S. Department of Commerce to provide information, understand regulatory requirements, and assist in stopping the illegal transfer of chips. When legal head Teter became involved in the matter in late summer 2025, he was unaware of Jensen Huang's extramarital affair with Huang Le. [Original Link]