Congressional Democrats plan to investigate what President Donald Trump knew and when about China’s alleged spying on Nvidia President and CEO Jensen Huang. The inquiry is expected to examine the administration’s handling of the case and Huang’s relationship with a woman reportedly assessed by U.S. intelligence agencies as collecting intelligence for China.

Rep. Jim Himes, a Connecticut Democrat expected to become chair of the House Intelligence Committee, said lawmakers want Huang to answer questions before Congress. “We’ve asked Huang to appear,” Himes told MS NOW on Tuesday.

The request came as the top Democrats on the Senate and House Foreign Affairs committees called for a full investigation into how Trump and other administration members handled the case. That scrutiny is expected to include what Trump knew about the alleged spying.

Rep. Gregory Meeks, a New York Democrat, said he would subpoena Jeff Kessler, a Trump Commerce Department political appointee. The New York Times reported that Kessler communicated with Nvidia about the department investigating the woman’s company for potentially smuggling advanced Nvidia artificial intelligence chips to China.

Kessler did not respond to the Times’ requests for comment. “Absolutely,” Meeks said Tuesday on CNN when asked whether he would seek Kessler’s testimony. “And this is why oversight is extremely important and not just rubber-stamping what a president wants.”

Sen. Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat, said Monday on X that the Senate would also investigate. “I’m pushing to investigate Jensen Huang and Nvidia to determine whether our national security was compromised,” Coons said.

“We need answers about the relationship between AI billionaires and the Trump administration, who’s making these decisions, and who’s really got their hand on the wheel,” Coons added.

Huang has apologized for having an affair. Nvidia said it is investigating the alleged spy claims and has found no reason to believe that company secrets or U.S. national security were compromised, while the Chinese government called the allegations a “smear.”

Trump told reporters Monday that Huang said he did not know the woman with whom he was having an affair was providing information to the Chinese government. Trump described Huang as an “honorable guy” and a “high-quality person.”

Asked about the administration’s handling of information about the alleged spying, a White House spokesperson directed MS NOW to Trump’s remarks. The spokesperson also said, “These sources have no idea what they’re talking about.”

Five former senior U.S. intelligence and national security officials told MS NOW they had questions about the administration’s handling of the investigation. Alan Kohler, the former head of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division, said the case raises questions about what the government knew and what it did with that information.

Kohler said the FBI routinely contacts Americans who are unwittingly interacting with someone assessed as connected to a foreign intelligence service. “If the government was aware of the contact, there could be legitimate reasons not to notify Huang and Nvidia,” Kohler said. “But it would be inconceivable that notification wasn’t considered.”

David Laufman, who led the Justice Department’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section from 2014 to 2018, said FBI agents commonly provide such Americans with “defensive briefings.” According to The New York Times, Huang has not received one.

Huang “sits atop one of the most important companies in one of the most important industries,” Laufman said. The possibility that Huang received no defensive briefing was, in Laufman’s words, “to me, that is inexplicable and remarkable.”

Glenn Gerstell, general counsel of the National Security Agency from 2015 to 2020, said Huang’s advanced chip knowledge and understanding of Trump’s views would have “immense strategic value” to China. An anonymous former senior FBI official praised intelligence agencies for detecting the woman’s alleged ties but said, “It’s what happened after that that is concerning.”

Nvidia’s board announced Sunday that it was beginning an “independent investigation” into Huang being targeted by a foreign intelligence effort. The former senior FBI official rejected relying only on Nvidia, saying, “I really don’t trust Nvidia to investigate Nvidia.”

“Maybe he didn’t do anything wrong, but it needs to be investigated,” the former official said of Huang. “You’re not talking about a regular company. You’re talking about a company that is central to the security of the United States.”