NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang resigns, CFO Colette Kress named interim chief

New Delhi, Nov 12 (IANS) – NVIDIA Corp. said on Thursday that Jensen Huang has resigned as President, Chief Executive Officer and a member of the company’s Board of Directors, effective immediately, amid mounting scrutiny over a reported affair with a woman whom U.S. authorities suspected of having ties to Chinese intelligence.

Leadership change

The NVIDIA Board of Directors released a statement reading: "NVIDIA Board of Directors announced today that Jensen Huang has resigned as President, Chief Executive Officer, and a member of the Board, effective immediately." The announcement focused on the leadership transition without further detail on the personal allegations.

Interim chief executive appointed

The board appointed Colette Kress, NVIDIA’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, as Interim Chief Executive Officer. The statement added that Kress will continue to serve as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer while leading the company until a permanent successor is named. Kress joined NVIDIA in September 2013 and has overseen the finance organisation during a period of rapid expansion. Prior to NVIDIA, she held senior finance positions at Cisco and Microsoft.

Board actions and new chair

In a separate move, the board named Harvey C. Jones as NVIDIA’s first-ever Chair of the Board. Jones, a veteran technology executive, entrepreneur and venture investor, previously served as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman of Synopsys. Commenting on the transition, Jones said, "Colette has helped lead NVIDIA through a period of extraordinary growth and has a deep understanding of our business, customers, operations and financial position." He added that the board has full confidence in Kress and the leadership team and expects the company’s operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption.

Market reaction

Following the announcement, Nvidia shares were down more than 10 per cent in pre-market trading. The board said it has initiated a search process for a permanent chief executive and will evaluate both internal and external candidates for the role. The company did not comment on the impact of the leadership change on its ongoing projects or financial outlook.

Ongoing scrutiny

The resignation comes amid reports of an alleged affair involving Huang and a woman suspected of links to Chinese intelligence, a matter that has attracted attention from U.S. authorities. While the board’s statement focused on corporate governance, the controversy has raised questions about potential security implications for the AI chipmaker.

Nagaland Post reported the developments, citing the official board release and statements from board members. The company’s next steps will involve completing the CEO search and addressing any regulatory concerns stemming from the reported affair.