By Alexandra Alper, Karen Freifeld and Courtney Rozen
WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) – A trio of House Republicans are unlikely to allow Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to send his company’s general counsel to answer questions on his behalf about his alleged relationship with a Chinese spy, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
House Foreign Affairs Chairman Brian Mast and two other top Republican lawmakers on November 4 asked Huang to provide a closed-door briefing about a New York Times report alleging he had a close relationship with a Chinese businesswoman who passed information to Beijing.
Mast is open to issuing a congressional subpoena if Huang doesn’t respond to their request, his spokesperson said. Lawmakers need support from colleagues to issue a subpoena, and the rules to do so vary by committee.
The US and China are locked in a race to develop increasingly powerful AI systems, with Nvidia at the center because its advanced chips are widely used to train and run cutting-edge models.
Washington has spent years trying to restrict China’s access to those chips on national security grounds, and the allegations involving Huang have intensified lawmakers’ concerns about whether export controls and other safeguards are strong enough to prevent sensitive US technology from benefiting Beijing.
House China Committee Chairman John Moolenaar, part of the group of lawmakers who requested the briefing, said on Fox Business that Huang had until 5 p.m. ET (2200 GMT) Wednesday to decide whether he would agree to meet with lawmakers behind closed doors.
“If he doesn’t agree to that or submit an additional date, I believe there will likely be subpoenas for him to appear,” he said.
A spokesperson for Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting Alexandra Alper and Courtney Rozen in Washington, Karen Freifeld in New York; Editing by Sonali Paul)
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