Nvidia’s board reportedly met on November 11 to discuss the future of CEO Jensen Huang, with The Wall Street Journal reporting that directors were preparing to remove the company’s co-founder. Reuters, citing a person familiar with the matter, also reported on the board discussion. Huang remains in the CEO role.
The reports triggered an investor reaction, with Nvidia shares falling more than 8% in after-hours trading. The leadership uncertainty arrives shortly before the company is scheduled to report financial results on November 17, while Huang remains central to Nvidia’s product strategy and has numerous executives reporting directly to him.
Investigation examines intelligence-related allegation
Nvidia announced an independent investigation on November 8 into whether Huang may have been the target of a foreign intelligence operation. At that point, the board said it retained confidence in Huang and had no reason to believe company secrets or US national security had been compromised.
The inquiry follows reports concerning Huang’s relationship with Alice Huang, a businesswoman associated with Singapore-based Megaspeed. US media reports alleged that she had ties to Chinese intelligence and had helped facilitate deliveries of Nvidia chips to Chinese companies. Huang acknowledged in a message to employees that he had been unfaithful to his wife.
Reports later alleged a separate relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare, who reported directly to Huang. The claims have raised questions over executive conduct and internal oversight. Former federal prosecutor Joon H. Kim and law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz have been retained for the investigation.
Bloomberg has reported that the board is working with an outside firm to identify potential successors. Replacing Huang would mark Nvidia’s first CEO transition since the company was founded in 1993; the key unresolved question is whether the board will make a leadership decision before its November 17 earnings release.
