A Chinese government spokesperson on Monday rejected claims that a woman romantically involved with Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, was a Chinese spy. The spokesperson dismissed the reports as “pure fabrication out of thin air” and “nothing but a smear against China.”

The response by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs underscored how the revelations involving one of the world’s most prominent technology executives have spilled into the intensifying rivalry between Washington and Beijing.

On Sunday, Huang acknowledged having a relationship with Alice Huang, a Chinese business executive whom U.S. officials suspected of providing information to Chinese intelligence. Nvidia said it was opening an investigation into Jensen Huang’s conduct. The company’s board said it had no reason to believe that national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised.

While U.S. officials have raised national security concerns, with some lawmakers calling for Huang to testify before Congress, the reaction in China has been to downplay the significance.

Chinese officials have sought to discredit the espionage allegations, while social media users seized on the personal tumult engulfing an American billionaire whose company is at the center of the race for dominance of the artificial intelligence industry between the two countries.

On Weibo, China’s heavily censored social media platform, users seemed to relish the fall from grace of a technology industry celebrity long admired across Asia.

“Jensen Huang’s 41-Year Loyal Husband Persona Falls Apart,” was the platform’s top trending topic Monday morning. Other users accused the American news media of smearing Alice Huang, who is not related to the Nvidia co-founder.

The controversy erupted after The New York Times reported that U.S. government officials had determined that Alice Huang, an executive for a Singapore-based tech company called Megaspeed, was gathering intelligence for Beijing.

The U.S. government had been investigating whether Megaspeed was helping to divert advanced Nvidia AI chips to China in violation of U.S. export controls. Authorities began surveilling Alice Huang more than a year ago and discovered she was communicating with an American citizen later identified as Jensen Huang, the Times reported.

“I was unfaithful to my wife,” Huang, 63, said on Sunday, after Nvidia had previously said their relationship was part of normal business interactions. “My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry.”

The investigation threatens to complicate Huang’s relationship with President Donald Trump. Huang has emerged as an influential technology industry ally of the president, even as he has pressed the administration to ease export restrictions that limit Nvidia’s ability to sell advanced chips to Chinese companies. In May, Huang joined a delegation that traveled with Trump to China.

Huang has argued that U.S. national security concerns are overblown because the Chinese military does not need Nvidia’s chips to develop AI technology and that the United States risks conceding technological leadership by closing itself off from the vast Chinese market.

Chinese officials have denied that Alice Huang was a spy. Their position was echoed Monday by prominent nationalist commentators.

Hu Xijin, the former chief editor of the Global Times, a newspaper controlled by China’s ruling Communist Party, cast the uproar as a U.S. political conspiracy. He called the disclosure “a calculated move by the Democratic Party and the U.S. establishment to take down Jensen Huang, and by extension, go after Trump.” Similar claims circulated on social media.

For Jensen Huang, the controversy is particularly striking because of his extraordinary popularity across Asia, where he enjoys a level of celebrity rarely accorded to corporate executives.

Born in Taiwan and raised in the United States, Huang has developed an image as a charismatic leader who can bridge the widening fractures dividing the technology industries in the United States and China.

His appearances in Taipei, Taiwan; Seoul, South Korea; and Beijing routinely draw crowds more commonly associated with Hollywood movie stars or professional athletes. At technology conferences, fans trail him for autographs and selfies. His signature black leather jacket has become instantly recognizable across the region.

During a visit to South Korea last year, Huang joined some of the country’s most powerful semiconductor executives for fried chicken and beer, attracting throngs of spectators and journalists. As crowds assembled outside, he handed out snacks to onlookers.

In Beijing, he has frequented neighborhood restaurants and food stalls, slurping down noodles and mingling with locals. Videos of such outings have circulated widely on social media, reinforcing his image as an accessible billionaire.

On Taiwanese social media, some users expressed disbelief and disappointment that Huang, who is often treated like a returning hero and long seen as a devoted family man, could have exercised such poor judgment. His popularity is such that some Taiwanese refer to him as “dad,” a local term of endearment for an admired figure.

In Taiwan, where fears of a potential Chinese invasion loom over public life, online commentators expressed concern about spying, wondering how Alice Huang gained entry to the self-governing island.

Nevertheless, Jensen Huang could soon be returning to Asia. On Sunday, Trump indicated he still planned to bring Huang on his upcoming trip to Asia for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, forum hosted in China. Xi Jinping, China’s top leader, is hosting the event, where advanced semiconductor technology and AI are expected to be a focus.

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By: Adam Satariano/Demetrius Freeman

c.2026 The New York Times Company