California man arrested over alleged $300 million Nvidia AI chip smuggling scheme to China

Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles have arrested a California business owner accused of moving more than $300 million worth of export-controlled AI hardware to buyers in China. Greg Lui, 38, also known as Yiu Kong Lui, was taken into custody on October 1, 2026. He owns Earthmade Computer Inc. His arrest followed a three-count federal indictment returned on September 29. The case matters because it lands in the middle of a broader US push to keep advanced computing technology out of China. Washington treats that technology as a national security issue, not just a trade question. What prosecutors allege Lui faces three charges. They are conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act, outbound smuggling, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. According to prosecutors, the alleged scheme ran between 2023 and 2024. The goods were high-end computer servers packed with US-manufactured GPUs, the processors used primarily for advanced AI applications. Shipping those servers to China legally would have required an export license from the US Commerce Department. Prosecutors allege Lui never sought one. Instead, the indictment says shipments were routed through Malaysia and Singapore....