By Truman Dickerson
Publication Date: 2026-10-02 16:08:00
A California man is facing federal charges for helping smuggle over $300 million worth of Nvidia semiconductor chips into China, prosecutors said this week.
Yiu Kong Lui, 38, of San Gabriel, Cali., was arrested on Thursday and is set to be arraigned in federal court and charged with violating export controls, smuggling, and money laundering, court records show.
It is illegal to export advanced semiconductor chips into China without a license, as the US competes with the East Asian giant in the AI race.
President Donald Trump drew criticism last year for allowing Nvidia to sell its chips to China, a departure from the previous US policy under President Joe Biden, which effectively blocked all exports of advanced chips to China.
Nvidia’s chips are especially sought after for use in AI data centers because they can perform multiple calculations simultaneously, and because the company’s software stack is widely compatible.
In a press release, US officials said Liu put US national security at risk by smuggling the chips.
“Controlling the export of advanced SI technology is critical to safeguarding our national security and defending the homeland, and the FBI will keep fighting for America’s businesses and economic security,” said Roman Rozhavsky, an assistant director of the FBI’s counterintelligence and espionage division.
It was not immediately clear on Friday whether Liu was being represented by an attorney. According to court records, Lui…
