Alice Huang had built a career in China's financial world long before she came into the spotlight over her alleged links to Chinese intelligence and relationship with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
For nearly a decade, she worked closely with Chinese financier Kang Wei, according to a report by the Financial Times. The two were business partners as well as romantic partners. They were also seen as a powerful couple in Chinese financial circles, with some people believing they were married.
But Kang had a troubled record with Chinese regulators. He was fined twice for stock market violations, raising questions about the business network Alice was part of before moving into the artificial intelligence industry.
From Journalist To Finance Executive
Alice was born in a rural area of China's Hunan province. She started her career as a journalist with CCTV, China's state-owned broadcaster.
In the mid-2000s, she moved to Hong Kong to study media at Hong Kong Baptist University. A former classmate described her as "well-liked, easygoing and ambitious".
She later worked at HSBC and then joined Citic Securities, where she was part of the credit trading division.
In 2015, she joined Hexi Capital, a private equity firm founded by Kang in 2010. The company invested in several sectors, including gaming and technology. It later expanded into data centres.
Her Business Partner's Run-Ins With Regulators
Kang was fined by China's securities regulator in 2018 and again in 2025. The total penalties amounted to 2.9 million yuan (Rs 4,07,11,220).
He was accused of using several investment companies to take control of businesses without making the required disclosures. The first penalty also referred to his work with Hexi Capital.
Chinese financial publication Caixin reported that Kang was detained earlier this year over suspected stock market manipulation.
There is also confusion over when Alice left Hexi Capital.
A company representative told the Financial Times that she had left in 2017. However, an investor who had met her said she was still using Hexi Capital business cards as recently as last year.
How Alice Entered The AI Business
Alice later turned her attention to Singapore as demand for AI computing power grew.
US restrictions stopped Nvidia from selling its most advanced chips directly to China. This created an opportunity for Chinese companies to rent computing power from data centres in Singapore and Malaysia.
In 2023, Alice and her partners bought Megaspeed, a Singapore-based subsidiary of a Chinese gaming company. They changed their focus from gaming to AI data centres. Alice joined the company's management team as a senior executive.
Around the same time, she began using the name Alice Wong instead of Alice Huang. The change replaced the Mandarin spelling of her surname with its Cantonese version.
People who knew her believed the change may have been an attempt to hide her mainland Chinese background. Her sister, Huang Yu, was also named as a director and investor in companies linked to Alice and Kang.
The Nvidia And Alibaba Connections
Alice continued working with Kang even after his run-ins with Chinese regulators.
The two began meeting potential investors at a private club in Shanghai. They used the meetings to raise money for their AI data centre plans in Southeast Asia. Their romantic relationship was not disclosed to investors.
The Financial Times reported that they approached Chinese investors in early 2025. They highlighted their ability to secure Nvidia GPUs and their business connections with Alibaba.
Alice had also attended one of Megaspeed's first meetings with Nvidia in 2023. A person present at the meeting described her as quiet and unassuming.
During the meeting, Megaspeed spoke about its business relationship and contract with Alibaba. Jensen Huang was not present.
Alibaba's involvement was important for Megaspeed. In 2024, the Chinese e-commerce company gave a loan to Megaspeed through a Singapore-based entity.
China Spy Allegations And Singapore Probe
Alice's business connections have come under further scrutiny following allegations that she may have worked for China's Ministry of State Security (MSS).
A person familiar with the Megaspeed executive told the Financial Times that MSS had contacted them earlier this year to ask about Alice's business activities and connections.
This happened after Singapore launched an investigation into Megaspeed over suspected chip smuggling to China.
It is not clear whether Alice herself was suspected of any wrongdoing.
China's foreign ministry rejected the spying allegations on Monday, calling them groundless and describing them as a smear and defamation.
Alice has not been seen in public since Singaporean authorities announced their investigation into Megaspeed in October 2025. People familiar with her believe she may have returned to China.
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