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Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang exits after affair allegations

Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang resigned after allegations of extramarital affairs, including one involving a suspected Chinese spy. Investors are weighing what his exit means for the chipmaker and the wider AI industry.

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Colette Kress, the chief financial officer at Nvidia, is currently acting as interim chief executive. She may remain in the post on a lasting basis, or the company might choose someone else for the permanent job. Possible picks mentioned include Ian Buck, the leader of Nvidia's AI chip and software lineup, and Rene Haas, a one-time Nvidia staffer who now runs Arm Holdings, a chip designer based in Britain. Kress was reportedly belittled by Huang during a meeting in the summer.

The accusations involved a relationship with Alice Huang (no relation), who is believed by some to be a Chinese spy, plus two other relationships with staff members. The board, which had never before had a chair, named director Harvey Jones to fill that position. Huang will sever every connection to the chipmaker.

In numbers

Second-most valuableNvidia rank by market value

Elon Musk was among tech executives who signed a petition calling on Nvidia to reinstate Huang, and he said the company would have supply chain issues without him. Lauren Cassidy, founder and chief investment officer of the Founders 100 ETF, an exchange-traded fund, said the board should leave the door open for Huang to return, depending on the investigation's results, because he has been an incredible executive.

NVIDIA$162.85down −26.41%over 1 month
$221.97$162.8514 Oct13 Nov

Prices can be delayed by 15 minutes or more. Past moves say nothing about future ones.

AI and chip stocks finished lower on Friday, while U.S. stocks were mixed as investors weighed fears about the fallout. The exit also removed the industry's most prominent opponent of U.S. chip controls, which could set up a showdown over new curbs on China's access to computing power. U.S. stocks finished the week higher.

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Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick faced growing pressure over his response to the scandal, including questions about delays in adding Megaspeed to a trade blacklist. Huang reportedly struggled to reach Beijing's chip policymakers. A divorce involving Lori Huang could also carry financial consequences under California divorce law.

$1,000 in NVIDIA

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Background

Nvidia's valuation rests on its advanced AI chips, known as graphics processing units (GPUs), which AI models such as ChatGPT and Claude need in order to be trained and to run.

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