Jensen Huang has resigned as Chief Executive Officer of AI technology giant Nvidia, effective immediately, following a scandal involving an alleged foreign intelligence operative. The company’s board of directors made the announcement on Thursday.
The decision was reached amid an ongoing investigation into Huang’s reported affair with a woman whom U.S. intelligence agencies suspect of conducting espionage on behalf of China.
Nvidia’s board had been preparing to remove Huang from his position, according to two sources familiar with the matter who confirmed the development to CBS News on Wednesday evening. Those plans were initially reported by the Wall Street Journal.
Huang’s departure also follows a New York Times report published Wednesday, in which five Nvidia employees came forward alleging that Huang had been romantically involved with a subordinate , Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s Vice President of Healthcare.
The Times further reported that Huang and Powell, both of whom are married to other individuals, were captured on video displaying affectionate behavior at a conference in March, according to two Nvidia employees. The Times has not viewed the video, and CBS News has not independently verified the report.
Colette Kress, currently serving as Nvidia’s Chief Financial Officer, has been named the company’s interim CEO while continuing in her existing financial role.
“The Board has full confidence in Colette and the leadership team, and we expect the company’s operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption,” said Harvey Jones, who was simultaneously announced as the company’s inaugural board chair.
Kress has served as Nvidia’s CFO since joining the company in 2013, having previously held finance positions at major technology firms including Cisco and Microsoft over the course of nearly 25 years.
In a statement, Kress emphasized that the company’s priorities would remain centered on “serving our customers, partners, developers and shareholders.”
“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,” Kress stated.
The board confirmed it will conduct a formal search for a permanent CEO, with consideration given to both internal and external candidates.
Huang co-founded Nvidia in 1993, and under his leadership, the company grew into one of the most valuable corporations in the world. Its prominence stems from the design of high-performance semiconductors that power many of the world’s leading artificial intelligence firms , technology that is considered highly sensitive and subject to export controls restricting sales to China.
Nvidia’s stock declined sharply as news of the company’s internal turmoil emerged, with the potential loss in market value exceeding $700 billion.
