Jensen Huang resigns as chief executive of Nvidia, the company announced on Thursday, November 12, ending a run of more than three decades as the leader of the world’s most valuable chipmaker. Huang also steps down as president and from the board, effective immediately.
Who Takes Over
The board named Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as interim CEO. She will keep her CFO role until a permanent successor is chosen, and the board is searching internally and externally. Kress joined Nvidia in 2013 and spent nearly 25 years in finance at Cisco and Microsoft earlier in her career.
Harvey C. Jones, former CEO and executive chairman of Synopsys, becomes the board’s first-ever chair. “The Board has full confidence in Colette and the leadership team,” Jones said, while Kress said the focus remains on serving customers, partners, developers and shareholders.
No Reason Given, Reports Point to Probe
Nvidia’s announcement did not state a reason for the departure. It comes days after the board opened an independent investigation, led by independent directors with outside counsel, into reports that Huang was targeted by a foreign intelligence effort. At that time the board said it had confidence in him. Media reports have linked the matter to his relationship with a former executive at another company whom US authorities reportedly concluded was a Chinese intelligence asset; Beijing denies this. These reports have not been confirmed by Nvidia.
Market Reaction
Nvidia shares fell more than 12 per cent in early trading, which, if sustained, would erase about $500 billion from a company valued at roughly $4 trillion and weigh on the wider market. Huang, who co-founded the company, holds about 3.61 per cent and is its fourth-largest shareholder. An analyst at ClearBridge Investments said the risk now is execution, since the product roadmap is largely visible for the next few years.
What It Means for AI and Policy
Huang had steered Nvidia’s large cash reserves into cloud providers, suppliers and leading AI labs, helping to fund the AI boom. His exit could also affect US chip export policy, as he lobbied to keep access to the Chinese market open and has close ties with President Donald Trump, who said Huang had “done an amazing job for our country.”
Nvidia says it expects operations, customer commitments and its product roadmap to continue without interruption, and will report third-quarter fiscal 2027 results on Tuesday, November 17, as scheduled.
At a Glance
- Jensen Huang resigns as CEO, president and board member, effective immediately
- Colette Kress is interim CEO; Harvey C. Jones is the first board chair
- Shares down more than 12 per cent in early trading
- Q3 results still due on November 17
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