On October 1, 2026, US authorities arrested Greg Lui, owner of a server distributor, accused of diverting more than $300 million in Nvidia GPU equipment to China. The same day, a Bloomberg investigation questioned why Nvidia’s controls failed to catch the warning signs.
According to coverage by Malay Mail, Arab News, and Hoodline, Greg Lui (also known as Yiu Kong Lui), 38, of San Gabriel, California, owns Earthmade Computer Inc., based in City of Industry and presented as an authorized distributor of Super Micro Computer solutions specializing in Nvidia GPU infrastructure. The indictment, issued by a grand jury on September 29, charges him with conspiracy to violate export controls, smuggling out of the country, and money laundering conspiracy.
The mechanism described: falsified paperwork and shipments through third countries, specifically Singapore and Malaysia, where export licenses weren’t required, to then re-export to Chinese buyers. The indictment alleges Earthmade received more than $176 million between January and October 2024 from two Malaysia-based shipping companies. This is an indictment, not a conviction.
Adding the two US cases together, coverage cites more than $800 million in alleged diversions. The October 1 Bloomberg investigation, according to published summaries, details signals that oversight mechanisms didn’t catch, including surveillance footage that captured labels being removed from servers. According to the same coverage, Jensen Huang publicly denied the allegations against the company.
Export controls apply to the chip, but smuggling happens at the layer of servers, distributors, and logistics. That pushes manufacturers to tighten the chain of custody, which can translate into allowlists, resale audits, and more friction for legitimate buyers in intermediate markets.
If your company in Guatemala or LATAM acquires GPU servers, buy only from authorized distributors and demand traceability (invoice, serial number, final destination). Expect more verification and longer lead times in the region as buyer lists tighten. And if the alternative is cloud capacity, check that your provider documents the origin of its hardware: the regulatory risk for an end customer is lower than for a reseller, but it’s worth knowing before you sign long-term contracts.
Carlos Montiel is an enterprise AI solutions architect. He implements LLMs, Agents, RAG, and orchestrators for companies across Guatemala and Latin America. Reach out for a consultation.
Contact Carlos Montiel