U.S. Arrests Tech Company Owner for Allegedly Smuggling $300 Million in GPU Servers to China

U.S. authorities arrested Greg Lui, the owner of California technology company Earthmade Computer Inc., on October 1, 2026, over an alleged scheme to smuggle more than $300 million in restricted GPU servers to China. The case centers on false customer records, shipments through third countries, and efforts to hide the equipment’s final destination.

Lui, 38, also known as Yiu Kong Lui, lives in San Gabriel. He is expected to appear for arraignment on October 2 in federal court in downtown Los Angeles. A federal grand jury returned the indictment on September 29, according to the Justice Department.

The three charges cover conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act and Export Administration Regulations, outbound smuggling, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors allege that Lui knowingly supplied restricted computing equipment to Chinese buyers without the required Commerce Department licenses.

U.S. Arrests Tech Company Owner

Between 2023 and 2024, Lui and alleged partners used Earthmade, based in the City of Industry, to buy high-end servers containing U.S.-made graphics processing units. The Justice Department describes these chips as technology commonly used for “Super Intelligence” applications.

Instead of declaring China as the final destination, the group allegedly told U.S. manufacturers that approved customers elsewhere would receive the servers. Freight forwarders then shipped the equipment to Malaysia and Singapore before it was sent onward to China.

The alleged violation concerns the hidden Chinese destination and missing export approvals, not simply the use of overseas shipping hubs. Prosecutors say the paperwork named customers and destinations that did not require licenses for the transactions described.

Assistant Attorney General John A. Eisenberg also said the alleged scheme involved dummy servers staged to mislead inspectors. The public announcement does not explain how those decoys were used or identify the GPU manufacturers or chip models involved.

Investigators say Earthmade received more than $176 million from two Malaysian shipping companies between January and October 2024. That figure describes payments cited in the alleged scheme, rather than the full value of the servers prosecutors say were smuggled.

One transaction offers a closer look at the route. In January 2024, Lui allegedly emailed a partner about a Malaysian company seeking 70 servers with restricted GPUs. An attached compliance form acknowledged U.S. limits on selling or forwarding those servers.

Later that month, Lui placed an order for 27 servers worth approximately $7.614 million. The equipment traveled from Los Angeles to Kuala Lumpur. Its packing list stated that the GPU servers could not be sent to China without a license.

In March 2024, an alleged partner emailed a Malaysian government official confirming that 27 servers had been forwarded to a buyer in China, prosecutors said.

U.S. officials say advanced GPUs can support foreign military capabilities, making control over their final users a national security concern. Separately, earlier, former Google engineer Linwei Ding was convicted of stealing AI trade secrets, another case involving sensitive computing technology and China.

For readers tracking technology supply chains, the allegations show why shipment records and stated end users matter in export investigations.

The Commerce Department’s export enforcement office, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the FBI are investigating Lui’s case. Each conspiracy charge carries a maximum 20-year prison term; smuggling carries 10 years.

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