NVIDIA (NVDA.US) CEO Jensen Huang has spent the past two years building close ties with US President Donald Trump, gaining significant access and influence over federal AI policy, while the company has also pushed for relaxed restrictions on sales of advanced chips to China.

Now, revelations regarding Huang's alleged extramarital affair with a suspected Chinese spy have placed the alliance under scrutiny, while also drawing attention to the millions of dollars invested by Huang and other NVIDIA executives to expand political influence in Washington.

As co-founder and CEO, Huang has effectively become synonymous with NVIDIA. During Trump's second term, he evolved from someone the president barely knew into one of the few corporate executives accompanying Trump aboard Air Force One.

NVIDIA has pledged at least USD26 million to projects led by Trump, including a USD25 million donation to the White House ballroom project and USD1 million to his 2025 inauguration fund. According to documents obtained by The Washington Post, the company initially hoped to make the ballroom donation anonymously. The report said the ballroom donation matched Apple in size and ranked among the largest disclosed corporate contributions.

The relationship is now being reexamined by congressional Democrats, including Connecticut Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, who pressured Huang in November 2025 over NVIDIA's ballroom donation and contacts with the White House. Blumenthal renewed his warning on Thursday, while California Democratic Representative Robert Garcia, who is expected to chair the Oversight Committee after Democrats regain control of the House next January, said he would investigate corporate corruption issues.

Trump continued defending Huang on Sunday, describing him as a "respectable person" and saying he had not heard of any misconduct. According to The New York Times, the president had already been briefed in October 2025 about the alleged Chinese intelligence operation but chose not to act. The report also said Secretary of State Marco Rubio supervised a classified memorandum this spring detailing related concerns.

In December 2025, days after meeting Huang again, Trump announced plans to allow exports of higher-performance H200 chips to approved Chinese customers. The Commerce Department formally relaxed licensing restrictions the following month.

In 2026, Huang continued accompanying Trump on visits to China, while NVIDIA also opposed congressional efforts to further tighten export controls.

However, NVIDIA's success in Washington has not yet secured full access to the China market. Beijing has still not approved large-scale imports of H200 chips, and as of early November, hundreds of thousands of chips were still awaiting shipment.

NVIDIA has also quietly intensified its Washington influence operations. According to company disclosures, federal lobbying expenses hit a record USD2.15 million in 3Q, up 72% QoQ and 10% YoY. As of September, cumulative lobbying expenses for 2026 reached USD4.69 million, close to the full-year 2025 level of USD4.97 million.

NVIDIA hired former Obama administration Commerce Department official and former Intel lobbying chief Bruce Andrews in June to oversee Washington operations, and established its first employee-funded political action committee (PAC) in August. According to CNBC analysis of Federal Election Commission filings, the committee had raised more than USD263,000 as of September but had not yet backed any candidates. The next disclosure date is December 3.

In addition, two NVIDIA executives - software vice president Gavin Sherry and hardware vice president Sundeep Madra - each donated USD443,000 to the Republican National Committee on Junw 24.

The donations underscore the close relationship between Huang and Trump. NVIDIA, the USD4.3 trillion technology giant, not only supports the US economy but also provides the US with a critical advantage over China in the competition for AI leadership.

The matter has also raised further questions regarding the Trump administration's response after US intelligence agencies reportedly revealed close ties between the influential NVIDIA executive and a Chinese spy.
~

AASTOCKS Financial News
Website: www.aastocks.com

SG Top Picks
Stock & Type	Code	Strike(Call Level)	Last	Effective Gearing
Nvidia (P)	11090	168 (-)	0.119	7.5 X