Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has reportedly been forced out of the semiconductor giant he founded and transformed into one of the world’s most influential technology companies, following days of turmoil surrounding allegations of affairs with a suspected Chinese spy and a senior company executive.
The Silicon Valley-based company announced Thursday that Huang, 63, was stepping down as CEO, president and a member of its board of directors, effective immediately. The announcement came after reports that Nvidia’s board held emergency meetings late Wednesday amid growing controversy over revelations of a second alleged extramarital affair.
Nvidia Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President Colette Kress will take over as interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor. Kress, who has been with the company for 13 years, will retain her current responsibilities throughout the transition. The search process is expected to consider both internal executives and external candidates.
Lori Huang and her husband, Jensen Huang, arrive at the 12th Annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony in Santa Monica, California, on Saturday, April 18, 2026.
Harvey Jones, a venture capitalist and former Synopsys CEO, will take on the role of Nvidia’s first-ever chairman of the board. The leadership shake-up comes less than a week before the company is scheduled to release its third-quarter earnings report.
Huang co-founded Nvidia 33 years ago and transformed it into a global semiconductor powerhouse. He also became one of the most recognizable faces of the artificial intelligence boom, famously known for his signature luxury leather jackets and all-black outfits.
However, his departure raises significant questions about Nvidia’s leadership succession. Huang reportedly had dozens of direct reports, while the company lacked a clearly established succession plan — a concern for investors worried about how the $4 trillion technology giant will maintain its momentum without its longtime leader.
“Jensen Huang’s resignation is the worst-case scenario during this entire saga, as he was not just a leader, but a visionary for the company,” Michael Landsberg, chief investment officer at Landsberg Bennett Private Wealth Management, said in a note Thursday.
“While CFO Colette Kress is highly capable and respected, there are still big questions about how Nvidia’s innovation will evolve without Jensen,” he added.
Alice and Jensen Huang are pictured drinking together in photos shared on the Chinese social media platform WeChat.
The latest developments mark a dramatic reversal from the apparent show of support Nvidia’s board gave the billionaire on Sunday. At the time, Huang had publicly acknowledged being unfaithful to his wife of more than 40 years, Lori Huang, whom he met while they were college sweethearts.
“There is no excuse for what I did,” Huang wrote in an email to employees following the revelations. He also promised colleagues, business partners and shareholders that he would “work to earn back your confidence.”
Bombshell reports have also alleged that Huang had an affair with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare.
Huang’s leadership position had reportedly been under scrutiny since an explosive October 29 report by The New York Times, which claimed he had developed a “close relationship” with Alice Huang, 49, an alleged Chinese Communist spy who shares no family connection with the Nvidia founder.
Nvidia had repeatedly denied that Huang’s relationship with the Chinese woman extended beyond business dealings. However, following Huang’s admission of infidelity, the company’s board reportedly launched an investigation into the relationship. The FBI also confirmed it was examining the matter.
The alleged relationship, which reportedly began in 2023, has drawn further scrutiny over Huang’s lobbying efforts in Washington. According to The Information, he pushed the US government to ease restrictions on chip exports to China, helping facilitate the delivery of at least $7.5 billion worth of Nvidia semiconductors to Chinese companies.
Jensen Huang was reportedly photographed in close company with Alice Huang, an alleged Chinese intelligence operative who has no family connection to the Nvidia founder.
Photos taken in June 2024 reportedly showed the pair drinking whiskey alongside prominent figures in the artificial intelligence industry. They were also said to have attended a business dinner at a Taipei restaurant the following May, joined by executives from other AI companies and semiconductor suppliers.
Alice Huang, an executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed, allegedly built a network of companies with her husband and sister across China and Singapore to secure access to powerful Nvidia chips, according to reports. Her husband was reportedly aware of the alleged affair and even introduced the pair, according to the New York Post.
In December 2025, President Donald Trump approved the sale of Nvidia’s H200 artificial intelligence chips to China, reversing restrictions introduced under the Biden administration over national security concerns. Huang had reportedly attended a dinner for major donors at Mar-a-Lago and contributed approximately $25 million to Trump’s White House ballroom project.
Meanwhile, North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer, a senior Republican member of the Senate Banking Committee, called for Huang to resign earlier this week, citing potential national security concerns surrounding the allegations.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is pictured sitting alongside Alice Huang at an event during the COMPUTEX technology forum in Taipei, Taiwan, in June 2024.
The chairmen of several House committees overseeing China, foreign affairs and intelligence also contacted Huang, requesting that he appear before lawmakers for a joint, closed-door meeting on November 18. The proposed meeting is intended to give the Nvidia chief an opportunity to address questions surrounding the allegations and explain his involvement.
Despite the growing controversy, Huang reportedly returned to Nvidia’s California headquarters on Monday and Tuesday, attempting to maintain a sense of normality. According to CNBC, he continued leading his regular morning meetings with the company’s senior executives, seemingly carrying on with business as usual.
President Donald Trump also publicly defended Huang, describing him as an “honorable guy” and suggesting that he “probably has an excuse” for the alleged affair. Trump added that Huang had told him he was unaware that the woman he was reportedly involved with was allegedly connected to Chinese intelligence.
President Donald Trump presents the National Medal of Science to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, October 8, 2026.
However, the apparent show of support came before another explosive report by The New York Times emerged Wednesday evening, alleging that Huang had a second extramarital affair with Kimberly Powell, 48, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare, who reportedly reported directly to him.
Powell joined the semiconductor giant in 2008, initially working to integrate Nvidia’s graphics-processing technology into medical imaging equipment. She steadily climbed the corporate ladder, becoming a senior director in 2016 before assuming her current executive position the following year.
According to the report, Huang and Powell were allegedly seen behaving intimately at a hotel in San Jose, California, during Nvidia’s annual developer conference in March. A bystander reportedly recorded the encounter before being taken aside by Huang’s security team and allegedly offered a nondisclosure agreement.
Jensen Huang and his wife, Lori Huang, are pictured walking to the White House for a state dinner on September 24, 2026.
Nvidia’s code of conduct reportedly cautions employees against potential conflicts of interest arising from personal relationships, raising further questions about the allegations involving the company’s CEO and a senior executive.
When contacted by The New York Times on Wednesday for comment about his alleged relationship with Powell, Huang responded, “I don’t think you should be talking to me directly,” before abruptly ending the call.
Nvidia had not immediately responded to The New York Post’s request for comment.
Meanwhile, a previously undisclosed government memorandum, reportedly prepared months earlier under the supervision of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, had warned senior Trump administration officials that Huang was allegedly involved in a close relationship with a suspected Chinese intelligence operative.
