Singapore case against three on AI chip fraud charges adjourned until Aug 22

The Singapore court case involving three individuals charged with fraud in the illegal transfer of Nvidia AI chips to a Chinese AI firm, DeepSeek, has been postponed to August 22, 2025. The accused—Singaporeans Aaron Woon Guo Jie and Alan Wei Zhaolun, and Chinese national Li Ming—allegedly misrepresented end users of servers purchased in 2023 and 2024. U.S. export restrictions on high-end chips to China began in 2022 due to concerns about military applications, and DeepSeek is reportedly linked to Chinese military and intelligence operations. The investigation includes 22 individuals and companies suspected of similar activities. Singapore authorities launched their probe independently following an anonymous tip. The servers, supplied by Dell Technologies and Super Micro Computer to Singapore-based firms, were rerouted to Malaysia, though it remains unclear if that was the final destination. In 2024, Singapore was Nvidia’s second-largest market, accounting for 18% of its revenue, despite actual shipments contributing under 2%, highlighting its role as a key invoicing hub in the region.