Jensen Huang Steps Down as Nvidia CEO Amid Spy and Affair Scandals

Nvidia stock dropped 14% when trading opened Thursday after CEO Jensen Huang announced his resignation. The decline followed weeks of reports regarding his personal life and professional ties to a suspected Chinese spy. By midday, the loss narrowed to approximately 4% as investors assessed the impact on the company's valuation.

Huang has led the company for more than 30 years. His departure marks a major shift for a firm that now sits between Apple and Microsoft in the S&P 500. The stock's initial reaction reflected concerns about the stability of the artificial intelligence sector and the potential for a market bubble.

Colette Kress, Nvidia's executive vice president and chief financial officer, has been named interim chief executive. She took the CFO role in 2013 after working for three years at Cisco and 13 years at Microsoft. In a statement, Kress said the company's strength comes from its people and that she is committed to building on the foundation Huang established over the last 33 years.

The board of directors did not have a succession plan in place for Huang. The group said it would evaluate internal and external candidates for the permanent position. The board also named Harvey C. Jones, an entrepreneur and venture investor, as its first-ever chairman.

The resignation followed a series of allegations. The New York Times reported that Huang had a relationship with a woman U.S. officials identified as a Chinese spy. The report stated she was recruited to influence Nvidia to make its advanced chips more available in China. A separate report late Wednesday alleged another affair between Huang and an Nvidia employee who reported directly to him.

President Donald Trump said on Monday that the FBI was investigating the matter. He remained complimentary of Huang on Thursday, noting that he has done a fantastic job. The White House became involved after the initial reports raised alarms about national security.

Nvidia's board announced an investigation into the allegations on Sunday. At that time, the board expressed confidence in Huang's leadership. The company said it had no reason to believe national security or its secrets were compromised. It stated that its inquiry would examine all available information.

U.S. lawmakers continue to seek answers. Rep. Brian Mast, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said his committee contacted Huang's team on Wednesday night. Mast said he sent an initial request for an interview on Nov. 5 and that Huang would receive a subpoena if necessary. The focus is on Huang's interactions with Alice Huang and the company's security protocols.

Alice Huang, the suspected spy, is a former executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed International. She is not related to Jensen Huang. Megaspeed faced allegations last year of illicitly shipping advanced Nvidia chips to China. The company said in December that there was no evidence of such exports. Singaporean authorities questioned Alice Huang last year and confiscated her passport. They barred her from returning to the country, suspecting she provided inaccurate information about her role at Megaspeed.

Megaspeed said Thursday that it has cooperated with the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security. The company hired a U.S. law firm to conduct a comprehensive census of its computer chips to verify export controls. Megaspeed's total assets grew roughly 90-fold from late 2023 to 2024, reaching almost $3 billion. Revenue in 2024 exceeded $294 million, up from none in 2023.