Taiwan detained an Nvidia employee in a probe into alleged smuggling of advanced AI chips to China; authorities investigating violations of export controls on cutting-edge GPU technology.

Prosecutors in Taiwan have detained an Nvidia employee as part of an investigation into the smuggling of the US tech giant's AI chips to China, according to a source familiar with the case. The unnamed individual was detained following raids on his home and workplace on July 24, carried out by the Keelung District Prosecutors Office.

He is suspected of offences including the falsification of business documents under Taiwan's Criminal Code.

The United States strictly restricts exports to China of the most advanced silicon chips used to power artificial intelligence systems, which are designed and produced by industry leader Nvidia. In May, Taiwanese officials announced they were investigating the shipment of high-end AI servers manufactured by Nasdaq-listed Super Micro that contained advanced Nvidia chips. These shipments were sent to China, Macau, and Hong Kong in violation of US export controls.

According to investigators, this Nvidia employee was identified as a person involved in the case after they analysed relevant evidence from a previous round of searches targeting Super Micro.