Commerce Dept’s Lutnick, Kessler under fire over inaction on Nvidia’s Megaspeed ‘spy’ fiasco

US Commerce Department officials Howard Lutnick and Jeffrey Kessler face criticism over the department’s response to Megaspeed, a Singapore-based AI firm accused of helping divert Nvidia chips to China. The article says a proposed export-control rule that could have restricted chip access through Southeast Asian data centres was ready in 2025 but was not published, and the controversy is prompting calls for investigations and tighter controls.

Officials reportedly found that Megaspeed had imported 50,000 more chips than Nvidia identified at its Singapore data centres. The former Commerce official quoted says agencies had approved the rule by July 2025, but Lutnick did not advance it; the department is now considering controls on remote access to chips in seven Southeast Asian countries. The article also reports that White House officials are weighing Lutnick’s position, while a White House spokesperson says President Trump has confidence in him.