Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigns amid spy, affair scandals
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has resigned following revelations of extramarital affairs and security scrutiny, wiping $450 billion in market value.
Market Shock and Stock Plunge as Jensen Huang Resigns
Nvidia’s market value fell below $4 trillion for the first time since 2025 following the immediate resignation of billionaire cofounder, president, and CEO Jensen Huang. The stock slid roughly 10 percent in early trading as US markets opened on Thursday, sending the company's shares to a 14-year low, according to the Reuters news agency. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was down 0.6 percent.
The executive stepped down from his roles on Thursday, concluding a chaotic week for the firm fueled by the exposure of two separate extramarital affairs and growing scrutiny over alleged national security breaches involving Chinese intelligence. That stunning downfall means a foundational architect of the artificial intelligence boom is gone from active management, leaving the world's leading technology company scrambling for stability without a designated succession plan.
For the semiconductor industry and global markets, the immediate test comes with Nvidia scheduled to report its fiscal third-quarter earnings on November 17, an event that will provide the first concrete figures on the financial toll and operational resilience of the firm. The company is also facing a shareholder class-action lawsuit alongside investigations by the FBI, the United States Congress, and the California-based chip maker.
From Silicon Valley Icon to Internal Investigation
For more than three decades, Huang, 63, stood as the face of the artificial intelligence revolution, building Nvidia from a graphics card startup into the world's leading technology company. At a company event in Las Vegas in January, Huang was asked how he had lasted more than three decades in the job, responding, The secret for being CEO for this long is, one: Don’t get fired. And then, two: Don’t get bored.
His signature leather jacket and status as an industry emblem made him a fixture in both tech and political circles. However, the intersection of his personal life and the company’s massive geopolitical influence has now become a liability. A close ally of US President Donald Trump, Huang has pushed to ease US restrictions on chip exports to China.
The investigation into Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, centers on concerns that she used her proximity to the Nvidia leader to gain sensitive information about advanced AI chips and influence U.S. export controls. Alice Huang is a Chinese citizen and Singapore-based executive at Megaspeed, described as Nvidia’s primary business partner in Southeast Asia. Founded in 2023, Megaspeed has been investigated over whether it helped Chinese companies access its $4.8bn stock of powerful Nvidia chips.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng told reporters Thursday that while Alice Huang was originally from mainland China, she entered Taiwan as a Hong Konger, having previously worked at HSBC’s Hong Kong private banking arm and at CITIC Securities, a Chinese investment bank, before becoming a director at Megaspeed, a company that described itself as an Nvidia cloud partner. Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported that the businesswoman entered Taiwan eight times in total in 2024 and 2025, with local media noting Jensen Huang visited Taiwan for two weeks between May and June, and made a short stopover in August. A video of the pair visiting a restaurant in Taipei in 2025 went viral and was broadcast globally.
President Donald Trump said Monday that the FBI is investigating Jensen Huang’s affair with an alleged Chinese government agent, though Trump stated he spoke with Jensen Huang and believes he had absolutely no idea that the person in question was a spy. Beijing has rebutted claims that Alice Huang was a Chinese spy, calling the allegation unsubstantiated.
Despite earlier assertions by Nvidia’s board on November 8 that there was no reason to believe that either national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised, the board has since launched an independent probe, appointing leading U.S. law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct it. The probe will be run by Joon Kim, the former acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District who was appointed in 2021 to investigate allegations of sexual harassment against then-governor Andrew Cuomo.
| Official | New Role | Key Responsibility |
|---|---|---|
| Colette Kress | Interim CEO | Maintaining operations and searching for a permanent replacement |
| Harvey C. Jones | Board Chair | Providing executive oversight in a newly created position |
| Jensen Huang | Former CEO | Subject of ongoing independent and corporate inquiries |
Internal corporate friction reached a breaking point with the revelation of the second affair with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare and one of the executives reporting directly to him. In March, Powell appeared at GTC, Nvidia’s annual developer conference in San Jose, where she spoke about using A.I. to aid in breakthroughs in health care and biology. The incident at a nearby hotel involved a bystander capturing the pair in a private moment on their phone during meetings. Huang’s security workers witnessed the bystander with the phone, sequestered the person, and asked them to sign a nondisclosure agreement.
Following the reports and hours of board meetings on Wednesday night where Huang was reportedly fighting hard to hang onto his role with the company he founded, Nvidia’s board initiated a swift ouster, marking a departure from the earlier support they had provided the CEO. The firm is now led by Colette Kress, who has served as CFO and executive vice president since 2013, alongside Harvey Jones, a venture investor for the last three decades and the former CEO of Synopsys, who has been appointed as Nvidia's first-ever board chair.
An Uncertain Path for the AI Giant
The resignation leaves Nvidia without a clear succession plan, a vulnerability that analysts and investors have noted with concern, compounded by the fact that Huang was a micromanager who told colleagues in the past several years that he would run Nvidia until he is 120 years old.
Aleksandar Tomic, associate dean for strategy, innovation, and technology at Boston College, told Al Jazeera that the resignation of Jensen Huang will have an outsized effect compared to a similar event at another large corporation given the relatively flat structure of Nvidia.
However, Tomic noted that Nvidia, an AI bellwether, is in a very strong position
that will enable the company to transition from Huang’s leadership, calling the resignation a speed bump
for the firm.
Nvidia is a strong company with a strong product and this is a sudden event, not a product of corporate struggle,
Tomic said. It may take some time to figure out the succession process, but Nvidia can handle it as they approach it from the position of strength.
While the board has confirmed that it is considering both internal and external candidates, speculation has already begun regarding who might take the reins of the chipmaker. Names circulating in industry reports include Nvidia’s own engineering executive Ian Buck, along with current interim head Colette Kress. Any new leader will have to navigate a complex environment of shifting U.S.-China trade relations and the persistent need to maintain the firm’s lead in the global AI hardware market.
Despite the change in leadership, Kress remains focused on maintaining stability. In a company statement, she stated, NVIDIA’s strength has always come from its people, and together with our leadership team, I am committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years.
Even after stepping down from active management, Huang retains massive financial ties to the chipmaker. He owns about 3.6 percent of Nvidia's stock, making him one of the richest people in the world. According to his September 18, 2026 SEC Form 4 filing, he held 811,521,160 shares directly and through associated family trusts and limited liability companies, while the company's March 2026 proxy statement listed 870.6 million shares under his beneficial ownership, including 58.7 million shares belonging to the Jen-Hsun and Lori Huang Foundation. At Nvidia's current quarterly dividend rate of 25 cents per share, those holdings generate $202.9 million every quarter, translating to more than $800 million annually.
The fallout extends internationally, particularly in Huang's birthplace of Taiwan, where his rock-star status has suffered a severe blow. At Jane Hsieh’s tofu pudding shop in Taipei, owner Jane Hsieh, 70, expressed shock at the dramatic headlines, noting that while she would be polite if he returned as a customer, her feelings toward him would be different. Resident Jeff Huang, 72, noted that some customers were already suggesting the removal of Jensen Huang’s photos in shops.
In Washington, House committees led by representatives Brian Mast, John Moolenaar, and Rick Crawford sent a letter to Huang demanding a closed-door briefing, writing,
Democratic senator Chris Coons wrote on X:Recent reports raise significant national security concerns regarding the PRC’s access to sensitive U.S. technology and information. The issue of PRC infiltration and access to cutting-edge U.S. technology is core to the investigative work of our three committees this Congress. It is vital that Congress determines the extent to which U.S. national security has been placed at risk.
Brian Mast, John Moolenaar, and Rick Crawford
The more I learn about the insane relationship between the Trump Administration, Chinese spies, and AI billionaires, the more I’m convinced there is nothing this administration does that isn’t corrupt. Congress will investigate and get answers.
Huang acknowledged his actions in a letter to employees, writing, I owe my family and all of you an apology. I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry.
He added regarding the national security allegations: Regarding the national security concerns raised in news reports, NVIDIA’s Board of Directors has initiated an independent investigation. I support the investigation and will cooperate fully. I love our country and our company. I am committed to protecting NVIDIA and supporting America’s national security. I am proud and grateful to be an American.
The company's business and product roadmap will continue as usual without interruptions as the board proceeds with its investigations under Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and presses forward with the search for a permanent CEO ahead of the November 17 earnings call.
Updated 3 times since publication; last update 14 November 2026, 03:42.
