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Jensen Huang Out at Nvidia After Spy and Affair Reports

Nvidia's co-founder resigns as CEO after two extramarital affairs come to light, one tied to alleged Chinese espionage.

By AI Chaiwala · Nov 12, 2026

Image: NVIDIA Newsroom

TL;DR

Jensen Huang resigned as Nvidia CEO, president, and board member after reports of two affairs.
One affair involved an executive at customer Megaspeed suspected of Chinese espionage; the other was with an Nvidia VP.
CFO Colette Kress is interim CEO; Harvey C. Jones named first board chair as shares fell.

Nvidia’s longtime CEO Jensen Huang has resigned after reports of two affairs, one with an alleged Chinese spy and another with a company executive who reported to him.

The board accepted his resignation Wednesday, effective immediately. He also stepped down as president and board member. CFO Colette Kress was named interim CEO while keeping her finance role. The company plans a search for a permanent replacement that could include both internal and external candidates.

Harvey C. Jones, a board member since 1993 and former Synopsys CEO, was appointed as Nvidia’s first-ever board chair.

The scandals

Reports linked Huang to Alice Huang, an executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed, a major Nvidia customer. U.S. officials suspect she passed information to China’s Ministry of State Security. Megaspeed bought $4.8 billion in Nvidia chips over two years and faced prior probes over possible illegal transfers to China.

“I owe my family and all of you an apology,”

Jensen Huang

The New York Times also reported Huang had an affair with Nvidia’s VP of healthcare, Kimberly Powell. The company and individuals involved have not confirmed that relationship.

Huang wrote to employees that he was unfaithful to his wife of 40 years. He said, “I owe my family and all of you an apology,” and noted the national security concerns raised in the news. The board launched an independent investigation.

Shares fell about 8 percent in after-hours trading after the second affair surfaced and are down 11 percent over five days.

The Tea

Huang ran Nvidia with tight control and no clear successor in place, so this exit leaves a sudden power vacuum at the top of the AI chip world. The mix of personal scandal and national security questions makes the transition messier than a normal CEO change, especially while the U.S. and China race on advanced AI hardware.

Sources

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