Questions have emerged over the identity and ownership of a Chinese company approved by the Trump administration to assemble advanced Nvidia artificial intelligence chips, after investigations found little evidence that the firm operates at its registered address.
The company, New Matrix, is listed at an industrial park on the northwestern outskirts of Beijing. However, a recent visit to the location found an unfinished, empty building with exposed electrical wires hanging from the ceiling and no visible signs of the company’s operations.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration authorised New Matrix to assemble Nvidia’s advanced H200 chips into computers designed for artificial intelligence applications.
The approval followed President Donald Trump’s decision late last year to permit the sale of the chips to China, subject to a security review by the US Commerce Department of the companies involved in the transactions.
New Matrix reportedly cleared the department’s assessment, which was intended to establish whether the companies presented potential national security risks.
However, findings from recent checks by The New York Times have raised doubts about the company’s actual presence in China and the identities of the individuals or organisations behind it.
Established about 17 months ago, New Matrix has a limited online footprint. Its registered address also does not appear in the industrial park’s company directory.
Officials at the property’s management agency, including a receptionist and a manager, reportedly told investigators that they had no record of the business operating within the facility.
Chinese corporate documents, however, indicate that the company’s owners have connections to a major Chinese private equity fund that was placed on a US trade blacklist in 2024.
Two analysts who reviewed the corporate records and other Chinese-language materials suggested that New Matrix could be operating as a front for businesses linked to the blacklisted investment fund.
The development has renewed concerns among technology experts, both within and outside the US government, over the screening process for Chinese companies seeking access to Nvidia’s advanced processors.
Their concerns centre on the possibility that the Commerce Department is approving companies to purchase and handle the chips despite their alleged connections to businesses previously subjected to US national security-related trade restrictions.
