US investigates alleged diversion of Nvidia AI chips through Thailand

Washington: A key company tied to Thailand's national AI ambitions is suspected of helping smuggle billions of dollars worth of Super Micro Computer servers containing advanced Nvidia chips to China, with Alibaba Group allegedly among the end customers, according to people familiar with the matter.

US prosecutors this year outlined a scheme in which Super Micro's co-founder allegedly worked with an unnamed Southeast Asian company and a network of third-party brokers to divert AI semiconductors in violation of US trade restrictions. The company, identified in court filings only as "Company-1," was named by sources as Bangkok-based OBON Corp.

Some of the $2.5 billion worth of servers sold to OBON allegedly ended up with Alibaba, the people said, speaking anonymously because of the legal and geopolitical sensitivity of the matter.


The allegations were detailed in a March indictment that triggered a sharp fall in Super Micro shares and marked one of Washington's most significant crackdowns on alleged AI chip smuggling since export restrictions on Nvidia chips to China were introduced in 2022.

Neither OBON nor Alibaba was named in the indictment, and US authorities have not publicly accused either company of wrongdoing.

Alibaba denied any involvement. "Alibaba has no business relationship with Super Micro, OBON or any third-party brokers who may have been mentioned in the indictment," a company spokesperson said, adding that it had never used banned Nvidia chips in its data centres.

OBON, a relatively obscure firm outside tech circles, helped establish Siam AI, Thailand's sovereign cloud initiative. In a May 2024 statement, OBON said it planned to deploy Nvidia servers in Bangkok to support Siam AI Cloud and advance Thailand's AI ecosystem.

Siam AI later secured Thailand's first official Nvidia Cloud Partner designation and hosted Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang at a December 2024 event promoting "sovereign AI." Siam AI CEO Ratanaphon Wongnapachant, nephew of former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, was also OBON's CEO until at least May 2024, according to company documents.