Greg Lui, the owner of Earthmade Computer Inc., was arrested on Thursday and charged with smuggling more than $300 million worth of export-controlled computer servers containing Nvidia artificial intelligence chips to China. The indictment, unsealed on October 2, 2026, alleges that Lui and unnamed co-conspirators used Earthmade Computer between 2023 and 2024 to acquire these servers and route them to China without the necessary U.S. Commerce Department licenses. Prosecutors claim that to bypass export controls, Lui submitted false documentation to U.S. manufacturers, misrepresenting the final destination of the equipment. The servers were then shipped to Malaysia and Singapore, countries that do not require licenses for such purchases, before being illegally re-exported to China.
Between January and October 2024, Earthmade Computer reportedly received over $176 million from two Malaysia-based shipping companies as part of this alleged scheme. One specific transaction detailed in the indictment involved a purchase order for 27 servers containing Nvidia H100 GPUs, valued at approximately $7.6 million. These servers were allegedly shipped from Los Angeles to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and subsequently transshipped to a buyer in China.
The charges against Lui include conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act, outbound smuggling, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years for each of the conspiracy charges and up to 10 years for the smuggling count. Federal prosecutors have sought to detain Lui pending trial, citing concerns that he poses a flight risk. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli stated that the defendant allegedly used false paperwork and third-country shipments to smuggle the servers, and that the prosecution will aggressively pursue those who risk national security for profit.
This arrest is the latest in a series of federal actions targeting the illegal transfer of advanced U.S. AI chips to China. In March 2026, three individuals were charged for conspiring to divert billions of dollars worth of servers with U.S. artificial intelligence technology to China. These efforts are part of a broader U.S. strategy to maintain its technological advantage and prevent adversaries from acquiring sensitive technology. Nvidia has stated its commitment to working with law enforcement on such prosecutions.