US President Donald Trump has said the FBI is investigating the affair between the chief executive of Nvidia and an alleged Chinese spy.
Trump said he spoke to Jensen Huang on Monday following reports that the US believed he had been targeted in a Chinese espionage campaign.
“I asked him that question, ‘Did you have any idea she was a spy?’ He said ‘I had no idea she was a spy’ and I really believe him,” Trump told reporters.
Beijing has rejected claims that Huang was targeted, with its foreign ministry saying the allegations were “entirely groundless, speculative and intended to smear and malign China”.
Speaking later at a White House press briefing, Trump told reporters, “I know the FBI is looking into” the affair but did not give further details on the investigation, or confirm when it was launched.
Trump added he thought that Huang was an “honourable guy and I feel very confident that he will be in good shape” after the investigations.
The FBI declined to comment when contacted by the BBC.
Nvidia, which has commissioned an independent investigation into the affair involving Alice Huang, alleged to be a Chinese spy, said it had no reason to believe the company’s secrets or national security were compromised.
Nvidia is the world’s second most valuable company after Apple, and designs computer chips that have become central to AI technology.
The revelations knocked about $250bn (£190bn) off Nvidia’s value on Monday as the company’s share price fell by more than 4%.
US intelligence officials believe Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, was a spy for Beijing, according to a New York Times report. She is not related to Jensen Huang.
According to the newspaper, Secretary of State Marco Rubio sent a memo to top officials in Washington in spring this year, warning that the Nvidia boss was in a close relationship with a Chinese spy.
