Huang resignation leaves Nvidia facing leadership crisis and congressional scrutiny
Nvidia has appointed Colette Kress as interim chief executive as allegations involving Jensen Huang draw questions from lawmakers and the company suffers a sharp market decline.
By Vanessa Lopez ·
Jensen Huang has abruptly resigned as Nvidia chief executive following allegations of extramarital relationships, leaving the AI chipmaker searching for a permanent successor amid scrutiny from US lawmakers. Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress was appointed interim chief executive on Thursday and called an emergency meeting of senior executives to discuss the company's future.
The controversy has coincided with a $550bn loss in Nvidia's stock market value over five days. The decline is its largest over that period since the company went public 27 years ago. Nvidia's market value had increased by more than 470% over the past five years and reached a peak a few weeks ago, but is now down 31% amid broader uncertainty across the technology sector.
Huang acknowledged on Sunday that he had been "unfaithful" to his wife after reports of a relationship with Alice Huang, an executive at Singaporean company Megaspeed who is not related to him. The New York Times reported suspicions that she was an intelligence asset for China. Beijing rejected the allegation as a smear, while US Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Thursday that the Justice Department had reached no conclusion about whether she had conducted espionage for China.
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chris Coons, alongside other Democrats serving on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, have publicly called for Huang to brief Congress. Their questions concern possible national security implications of the alleged relationship. A Senate staff member told the BBC that Huang could face a subpoena if he declined to attend voluntarily before a committee requesting his appearance.
Reports on Wednesday alleged a second relationship, involving Kimberly Powell, a longstanding Nvidia executive who reported directly to Huang. Sources told the BBC that employees had observed an unusual closeness between them. One current employee said workers largely dismissed the initial infidelity reports, but became more troubled after the allegations involving a colleague emerged. Another said staff had been instructed against speaking publicly or to journalists.
Nvidia launched an investigation into whether Huang had been targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. The company said it had no reason to believe national security or its confidential information had been compromised, while promising its independent inquiry would examine all available information. Company officials have declined to comment since Wednesday, and Huang's personal representative declined comment on Thursday.
Huang had been Nvidia's public face since 1993, overseeing its emergence as a major supplier to the AI industry. Its chips were originally developed for gaming, but demand expanded as companies building chatbots and large language models needed substantial computing capacity. Many employees accumulated millions of dollars through share compensation as the stock climbed.
The market decline also has implications beyond Nvidia's workforce and investors. The company represents about 7% of the S&P 500, an index commonly tracked by funds held in US retirement accounts. Changes in Nvidia's share price can therefore affect the retirement savings of ordinary Americans.
