WASHINGTON — Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott sent letters on Thursday asking former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to testify over recent developments at the company, Reuters reported.
Huang stepped down from Nvidia on Thursday. His exit came after reports of a romantic relationship with a businesswoman named Alice Huang, whom U.S. authorities suspect of spying for the Chinese government, according to Reuters.
“Recent reports raise serious concerns about our national security and the protection of sensitive US technology,” Scott wrote on X. “I am requesting that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick testify before the Senate Banking Committee.”
Scott said he would consider subpoenaing Huang if he does not appear voluntarily. “The American people deserve answers,” he said.
Spokespeople for Huang and Lutnick could not immediately be reached, according to Reuters.
Lutnick has drawn criticism from a growing number of lawmakers. They have faulted the administration’s refusal to add dozens of Chinese companies to a key U.S. trade blacklist, and they have questioned whether the government was properly overseeing Nvidia’s exports to China, Reuters reported.
Senior White House officials were separately discussing whether Lutnick should be pushed out, two people familiar with the situation told Reuters, as the desire to take action rose across Washington.
House committees set December interviews
The chairs of three House committees have moved as well. In a joint letter, they required Huang and Nvidia general counsel Tim Teter to appear for closed-door transcribed interviews on Dec. 1 and Dec. 2, respectively, or face subpoenas.
“There are clear national security concerns that need to be addressed immediately,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, House China Select Committee Chairman John Moolenaar and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford wrote in the letter.
The three chairmen also asked Under Secretary of Commerce Jeffrey Kessler to testify at a hearing on Dec. 3.
China has denied that Alice Huang is a spy. Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Thursday that the Justice Department has not yet reached a conclusion on whether she is one, and Alice Huang could not be reached for comment, according to Reuters.