Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang steps down amid spy scandal and affair claims

Detailed summary

The exit marks a sharp fall from grace for Huang, who is largely responsible for kicking off the AI boom. The chips made by the company he founded in 1993 have become critical to…

Jensen Huang, the founder who propelled Nvidia to become one of the world’s most valuable companies, has resigned from his role as chief executive after 33 years.

The announcement from Nvidia’s board Friday morning ends a whirlwind several days of speculation about Huang’s future in the wake of a stunning corporate scandal.

It came days after the board said it would investigate whether Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort amid reports of his relationship with a woman US officials believe is a Chinese spy, and hours after The New York Times reported that the CEO also had an affair with an executive who reports to him.

The exit marks a sharp fall from grace for Huang, who is largely responsible for kicking off the AI boom. The chips made by the company he founded in 1993 have become critical to the AI infrastructure, putting Nvidia at the center of the AI buildout and thrusting Huang into President Donald Trump’s inner circle.

Colette Kress, current Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Nvidia, has agreed to serve as Interim Chief Executive Officer, the company said.

Nvidia’s stock slid about seven per cent in early Frankfurt trading on Thursday after the Wall Street Journal first reported that the company was preparing to fire Huang.

If those losses hold, Nvidia will have lost about $US600 billion ($A878 billion) in market value since the board announced its investigation into his relationship with a businesswoman called Alice Huang, who US officials allege is a Chinese spy.

Revelations that US intelligence was probing Alice Huang for facilitating shipments of Nvidia chips to Chinese firms set off a series of events.

Wall Street began raising questions about Nvidia’s governance and Jensen Huang’s personal conduct while the company’s board launched an internal investigation and hired outside counsel.

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