Critics say Lutnick failed to cut off diversion of Nvidia chips to China

Before President Trump nominated Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department, he was the chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, a New York investment bank that held about $1.2 billion in Nvidia stock. Lutnick developed a close relationship with Jensen Huang, who resigned Thursday amid reports of multiple affairs, including one with Alice Huang, believed by the U.S. to be a Chinese spy.

Alice Huang ran Megaspeed International, a Singapore-based company that became one of Nvidia's biggest customers for AI chips and is suspected of illegally shipping the company's most advanced AI chips to Chinese entities, circumventing a U.S. ban.

Export Control Failures

As commerce secretary, Lutnick oversees an agency responsible for policing exports of sensitive technology to adversaries. The Commerce Department uses its Entity List to restrict access to U.S. technology products for entities deemed risks to national security. However, the department has not added a company to this list since October 2025.

In 2024, under the Biden administration, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security launched an investigation into Nvidia's chip sales to Megaspeed. According to The New York Times, the probe was abruptly transferred to the Department of Justice, which has not commented on the investigation.

Political Reactions

Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted Lutnick over the Commerce Department's failure to place Megaspeed on the Entity List, Axios reported. On Thursday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren called on Lutnick and his deputy Jeffrey Kessler to explain why they have not closed export control loopholes.

Warren urged the two officials to 'act today to ensure our advanced technology is not fueling China's military.' In March, she had written to Lutnick demanding the 'immediate pausing' of all export licenses of Nvidia chips destined for China.

Conflicts of Interest

Questions about Lutnick's ties to Chinese companies have further complicated the situation. His former firm, BGC Group, had a 33% stake in a joint venture with China Credit Trust, a state-owned company. Cantor Fitzgerald, which he still oversees through his sons, helped several Chinese companies go public in the U.S.

Since becoming commerce secretary, Lutnick and his family's net worth doubled to $7.3 billion, largely due to his indirect stake in Tether, which has a large footprint in China. His stake, worth $1.7 billion in early 2025, has more than tripled in value.

Kathleen Clark, a government ethics expert at Washington University in St. Louis, questioned whether Lutnick is looking out for the public interest. 'What's going on with him raises a lot of red flags,' she said.

Access and Influence

Huang met Lutnick soon after Lutnick began his term as commerce secretary, according to Huang's appearance on podcaster Joe Rogan's show. Huang claimed Lutnick told him, 'You're a national treasure. Nvidia is a national treasure. And whenever you need access to the president, the administration, you call us.'

Huang attended a $1 million-per-person dinner at Mar-a-Lago in April 2025, where he tried to convince President Trump to lift restrictions on Nvidia's less advanced H20 chip sales to China. Less than three months later, Trump lifted those restrictions. In July 2025, Lutnick posted a photo on Instagram showing Huang in the Oval Office with Trump.