Bessent and Lutnick split over Nvidia chips slipping to China

A rift has opened inside the Trump administration over how Nvidia's advanced AI chips keep reaching China. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is squared off against Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and the flashpoint is Megaspeed International — a Singapore-based entity accused of slipping around U.S. export controls.

Bessent and other senior officials have reportedly pushed to put Megaspeed on the Commerce Department's entity list, according to Crypto Briefing. Lutnick has not signed off on the move. That silence sits at the center of the standoff.

The clash lays bare competing instincts inside the administration: how hard to squeeze national security concerns tied to high-tech exports without choking off the flow of American chips abroad. It also puts Lutnick's standing as Commerce Secretary directly in the frame.

Next up on the calendar: Lutnick's testimony before the Senate Banking Committee, where the Megaspeed case and the entity list decision are likely to follow him in. Watch for any statement or action from President Trump on Lutnick's role, or a shift on Megaspeed's status, as the clearest signals of which way this breaks.