Details from an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice indicate that advanced servers equipped with Nvidia chips, manufactured in the United States, may have been diverted to China worth several billion dollars, in part through a Thai intermediary. Bloomberg reports the intermediary buyer was OBON Corp, a Bangkok-based firm identified in the indictment as “Company 1.”
Who is accused and what are the charges?
In March, the Department of Justice filed charges against Yih-Shyan Liaw, co-founder of Super Micro Computer, along with a sales leader and a subcontractor. According to the indictment, U.S.-made servers were routed through Taiwan to Southeast Asia, where they were repackaged into unlabeled boxes and then smuggled into China.
Bloomberg’s sources say Alibaba was listed among the end users. The DOJ alleges that at least $2.5 billion worth of U.S. artificial-intelligence technology was exported illegally, with more than $500 million of that occurring between April and May 2025.
Corporate responses
Nvidia said it expects its partners to follow strict compliance rules and continues to cooperate with government authorities to enforce export controls.
Alibaba told Reuters it has no business relationship with Super Micro Computer, OBON, or the intermediaries named in the indictment, and stated that its data centers never used prohibited Nvidia chips.
Regulatory background
In 2022 the United States banned exports of Nvidia’s highest-end chips to China, citing potential military applications. In January 2026, however, sales of Nvidia’s H200 chip — the company’s second-most powerful model — were allowed under certain conditions.
Legal fallout and shareholder litigation
In March, Super Micro shareholders filed a lawsuit against the server manufacturer, alleging securities fraud and claiming the company hid its reliance on sales that violated China export restrictions. The criminal charges and the shareholder suit could carry further legal and financial consequences for the companies involved.
Why this matters
The case highlights challenges in enforcing export controls across global semiconductor and AI supply chains and demonstrates methods allegedly used to evade those controls. The scale alleged by prosecutors — at least $2.5 billion — suggests material ramifications for market participants and for international trade regulation.
Summary
Prosecutors allege that individuals connected to Super Micro Computer and a Thai intermediary funneled U.S. technology into China in violation of export controls, in transactions worth billions of dollars. The ongoing investigation and subsequent legal proceedings may affect export-policy enforcement and the reputations and finances of the firms involved.
