Super Micro Computer has been dragged into Taiwan’s Nvidia chip smuggling probe after authorities raided one of its offices.
Bloomberg said the raids were tied to alleged attempts to move Nvidia chips into China.
The report quoted a statement from Taiwan’s Keelung District Prosecutors’ Office listing several offices searched during the investigation.
A Super Micro office appeared on the list, although the statement did not directly name the company. Bloomberg’s report was corroborated by the Financial Times.
The raid was confirmed by a filing from Taiwan’s Albatron Technology Co, a distributor of Super Micro’s products. Super Micro’s co-founder and a contractor have been charged by the US government over claims they smuggled $2.5 billion worth of AI chips into China. Both have pleaded not guilty in a New York court.
Super Micro gave the Financial Times a statement after the latest raid, saying: “Supermicro products continue to be targeted in these matters, and we continue to co-operate with law enforcement and government officials in Taiwan and other jurisdictions in which we operate to ensure our technology is distributed as lawfully intended.”
The company said it was working closely with Taiwanese authorities on the “events” to make sure relevant export control laws were followed.
The US has blocked China from acquiring Nvidia chips, although re-exporting chips from Taiwan to China is not a criminal offence in Taiwan.
After individuals linked to the company were indicted earlier this year, Super Micro said their alleged behaviour was a “contravention of the Company’s policies and compliance controls, including efforts to circumvent applicable export control laws and regulations.”
Super Micro ended its relationship with the contractor allegedly involved in the smuggling. It placed the two employees on leave.
Along with the Grey Box Shifter, Dell, Super Micro plays a key role in the AI infrastructure buildout. Both companies assemble Nvidia’s AI chips for data centre use, which makes any smuggling probe rather awkward for the server-selling crowd.
