Super Micro Contractor Pleads Guilty in $2.5 Billion Nvidia AI Chip Smuggling Case

Ting-Wei "Willy" Sun, a Super Micro Computer Inc. (NASDAQ:SMCI) contractor, pleaded guilty to helping illegally export servers with advanced Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) AI chips to China in an alleged $2.5 billion scheme. Prosecutors Allege $2.5 Billion Super Micro Server Diversion to China Sun entered the plea Thursday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. He admitted to four charges: conspiring to violate U.S. export controls, smuggling, defrauding the U.S. government and obstructing justice, Reuters reported, citing a court filing. In March, prosecutors charged Sun and two others tied to Super Micro with conspiring to divert about $2.5 billion in U.S. AI servers to China, according to the indictment. The scheme began around 2024 and involved shipping servers without required licenses, it said. The indictment described Sun as a broker and fixer. It alleged that he helped set up fake servers in December 2025 and lied to a U.S. Department of Commerce official during an inspection. According to the indictment, the servers had already been diverted to China. Co-founder Yih-Shyan "Wally" Liaw and Taiwan sales manager Ruei-Tsang "Steven" Chang were also indicted. The U.S. restricts sales of advanced AI chips to China on national security grounds. According to the indictment, those restrictions cover Nvidia’s B200, H100 and H200 graphics processing units, as well as servers equipped with these chips. Super Micro Computer did not immediately respond to Benzinga‘s request for comment. The California-based AI-server maker said it terminated Sun and cut ties with the other defendants earlier this year. Trading Metrics Super Micro Computer has a market capitalization of $27.50 billion, a 52-week high of $58.51 and a 52-week low of $19.49. The stock has fallen 20.82% over the past 12 months but has gained 65.70% over the past six months. .benzinga-widget#bz-embed-widget-block_ffcbef9c79f80bab43f5aaa040ca80de iframe.w-full { width: 100%; } @media (max-width: 600px) { .benzinga-widget#bz-embed-widget-block_ffcbef9c79f80bab43f5aaa040ca80de iframe.w-full { height: 670px; } } Read Also: Anthropic AI Model Submits Fake Homicide Tip to Philadelphia Police: 'Delay In Detecting and Reporting' Is Unacceptable, Says Department Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Image via Shutterstock