Douglas Turner
Taiwanese prosecutors raided the local offices of Super Micro Computer and two other companies on Monday, widening a criminal investigation into the alleged smuggling of Nvidia AI chips into China and pushing the number of people under scrutiny from three to nine.
At a Glance
- Keelung District Prosecutors Office searched 12 locations, including six homes and three company offices.
- Companies raided: Super Micro Computer, Albatron Technology, and Chief Telecom.
- Roughly 50 Super Micro servers with advanced Nvidia chips are alleged to have been routed to China through Japan.
- Super Micro stock fell 8% in the US; Albatron dropped 10% and Chief Telecom lost more than 2% in Taipei.
- Taiwan currently has no law that directly bans AI chip exports to China, prompting a legislative fix.
What Investigators Say Happened
Keelung's head prosecutor, Huang Sheng, told reporters that Monday's raids covered a dozen sites: six private residences plus the offices of Super Micro, which trades on the Nasdaq, and two Taiwan listed firms, Albatron Technology and Chief Telecom. All three companies say they are cooperating with the investigation.
The core allegation is that suspects doctored shipping paperwork to move about 50 Super Micro servers, each packed with high end Nvidia processors, out of Taiwan and into China without the required export clearances. Some of these servers reportedly cleared Taiwanese customs before being rerouted through Japan on their way to their final destination, according to Bloomberg reporting. If accurate, that would mean the shipments slipped past an early checkpoint only to be diverted later along a path designed to obscure where the hardware actually ended up.
This isn't a new case so much as an expanding one. Prosecutors first opened the inquiry back in May, when they began examining whether premium AI servers meant for buyers in mainland China, Macau, and Hong Kong were being shipped in violation of export rules.
How Markets Reacted
Investors didn't wait for more details. Super Micro shares dropped 8% in US trading following news of the raids. In Taipei, Albatron Technology's stock sank 10%, while Chief Telecom slipped more than 2%. For a sector already sensitive to headlines about chip export enforcement, the sharp moves reflect how seriously traders are treating any sign that a company might be entangled in a smuggling probe, even before charges are filed.
Super Micro pushed back on the implication that it was complicit, saying in a statement that it remains committed to making sure its technology reaches only lawful end users. The company added that it has
Eugene Castillo
Dean Porter
