In the long contest over who guards the gates of advanced technology, a familiar question has surfaced inside the American government: when a company is suspected of routing powerful chips toward a rival nation, how quickly should the state act, and who holds the authority to act? Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to testify before the Senate Banking Committee on December 10, under pressure from members of his own party. At the center is Megaspeed, a Singapore-based firm that the government suspects of steering advanced Nvidia chips to China, and a delay in placing it on the Entity
Lutnick Agrees to Testify on Dec. 10 as Bessent Points to Commerce Over Megaspeed Chip Delay
Commerce has the pen.
Mark
Why does a delay in one listing matter so much?
Mimi
The Entity List is how the government restricts a company's access to advanced chips. Until Megaspeed is on it, the company can keep getting them, and the U.S. suspects it of routing Nvidia chips to China.
Luke
Suspects is the operative word. The reporting says the government suspects that; it doesn't show proof of what was shipped or how much.
Mark
And Lutnick has agreed to testify?
Mimi
Yes, on Dec. 10 before the Senate Banking Committee, per a U.S. official. Republicans are the ones pressing for it.
Mark
What is Senator Banks actually claiming?
Mimi
That Commerce appears to have used loopholes to let some sales happen despite Trump's direction not to allow them.
Luke
Note the hedge, though: it appears. That's a senator's reading, not a documented finding, and no loophole is specified.
Mark
Bessent's line was that Commerce has the pen.
Mimi
Right. He said Treasury, War, the Trade Representative and State favored listing Megaspeed for months, and that Commerce controls the process.
Luke
That's one official's account, and it's convenient for Treasury. Commerce hasn't responded, and Bessent declined to discuss reported tensions with Lutnick. We also don't know why the delay happened.
O Pulso
- Republicans are pressing Commerce, and a senator alleges loopholes let chip sales to China proceed despite a presidential directive.
- Treasury's Bessent publicly places the delay on Commerce, insisting other agencies wanted Megaspeed listed for months.
- A suspected chip diversion to China hangs over a Singapore company that has not yet been placed on the Entity List.
- Lutnick has agreed to testify on December 10, and Commerce has not yet answered the allegations in public.
In the long contest over who guards the gates of advanced technology, a familiar question has surfaced inside the American government: when a company is suspected of routing powerful chips toward a rival nation, how quickly should the state act, and who holds the authority to act? Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to testify before the Senate Banking Committee on December 10, under pressure from members of his own party. At the center is Megaspeed, a Singapore-based firm that the government suspects of steering advanced Nvidia chips to China, and a delay in placing it on the Entity List. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has publicly said other agencies had pressed for that step for months, leaving the department's account still unheard and the matter to be weighed in December.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to appear before the Senate Banking Committee on December 10, and the reason is not hard to find. A growing number of Republicans want him to explain how his department has overseen the export of powerful AI chips, and the question at the heart of the matter is why Commerce seems to have been slow to add Megaspeed International, a Singapore-based company, to the Entity List. Such a listing would cut the firm off from advanced chips, and the government suspects it of steering Nvidia processors toward China in defiance of American export controls.
The pressure has come from within Lutnick's own party. Sen. Jim Banks of Indiana, a Banking Committee member, told Fox News that Commerce appears to have used loopholes to allow some of these sales, even though President Trump had directed the department not to permit them. That is Banks's reading of events, not a settled finding.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent then turned the spotlight elsewhere. Speaking to CNBC, he said Treasury, War, the U.S. Trade Representative and State had favored listing Megaspeed for months, but that Commerce holds the pen, so questions about its internal process belong with Commerce. Bessent declined to discuss reported tensions between himself and Lutnick. Commerce has not yet responded to CBS News, so its side of the delay remains unheard.
The December 10 hearing will be the first formal opportunity for Lutnick to answer these claims. Observers will be watching for how he explains the timing around Megaspeed, and whether Banks's loophole allegation is confirmed or rebutted.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to appear before the Senate Banking Committee on Dec. 10, according to a U.S. official. The commitment comes as a growing number of Republicans press him to explain how the Commerce Department has overseen exports of powerful AI chips.
The immediate question is why Commerce appears to have been slow to add a Singapore-based company, Megaspeed International, to the U.S. government's Entity List. A listing would restrict the company's ability to obtain advanced AI chips. The U.S. government suspects Megaspeed of steering advanced Nvidia chips to China, in circumvention of American export controls.
The source text is fragmentary on the background, but it ties the controversy to the resignation of Nvidia's CEO. It also says the company was previously led by Alice Huang, described as a suspected Chinese spy who had an affair with Jensen Huang. Those details are reported in the source without further elaboration, and the exact sequence connecting them to the resignation is not laid out there.
The political pressure has come from inside Lutnick's own party. Republican Sen. Jim Banks of Indiana, who sits on the Banking Committee, spoke to Fox News on Thursday. He said it appears Lutnick and the Commerce Department used loopholes to allow some of the chip sales to occur, even though President Trump had directed his administration and the department not to permit them. That is Banks's characterization of what appears to have happened, not an established finding.
On Friday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pointed the finger elsewhere in the administration. He stressed repeatedly that Treasury and other parts of the executive branch had pushed for restrictions on Megaspeed, and he placed responsibility for the delay with Commerce.
Speaking to CNBC, Bessent said Treasury, War, the U.S. Trade Representative and State had favored putting Megaspeed on the Entity List for months, but that Commerce has the pen. Questions about the department's internal processes, he said, would have to be put to Commerce.
Bessent declined to comment on reported tensions between himself and Lutnick. The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to CBS News' request for comment, so Lutnick's side of the delay has not yet been heard in this account.
The Dec. 10 hearing will be the first formal setting in which Lutnick can answer the claims. Watch for whether he explains the timing on Megaspeed, and whether the loophole allegation from Banks is borne out or rebutted.
Citações Notáveis
Treasury, War, [the U.S. Trade Representative] and State were in favor of putting Megaspeed on the Entity List for months, but Commerce has the pen.— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, to CNBC
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