Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has resigned as the company’s president, chief executive officer and a member of its board, the company announced on Thursday, following revelations about his alleged romantic relationships with two women, including a Chinese businesswoman reportedly suspected by US intelligence agencies of having links to China’s Ministry of State Security.
Nvidia has appointed Colette Kress, the company’s current executive vice president and chief financial officer, as interim CEO.
Nvidia shares NVDA fell more than 10% in premarket trading on Thursday following the announcement.
Kress will continue to serve as executive vice president and CFO while taking on the interim CEO role, until a permanent successor is appointed.
The board has initiated a search for a permanent chief executive and will consider both internal and external candidates, the company said.
Colette Kress takes charge as interim CEO
Kress has served as Nvidia’s executive vice president and CFO since joining the company in September 2013.
“During her tenure, she has led the company’s finance organization and has played a key role in NVIDIA’s growth and evolution. Prior to joining NVIDIA, Kress spent nearly 25 years in finance roles at leading technology companies, including Cisco and Microsoft,” Nvidia said in a statement.
The company also appointed Harvey C. Jones as its first-ever chair of the board.
Jones has been an entrepreneur, technology executive and active venture investor for more than 30 years, including serving as chief executive officer and executive chairman of Synopsys, Nvidia 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,” said Harvey Jones, chair of the Nvidia board of directors.
“She is supported by an experienced leadership team that has been instrumental in executing NVIDIA’s strategy and advancing its technology roadmap. The Board has full confidence in Colette and the leadership team, and we expect the company’s operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption.”
“NVIDIA’s strength has always come from its people, and together with our leadership team, I am committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years,” said Kress, who will serve as interim CEO and CFO.
“We will continue advancing the work that has made NVIDIA a leader in accelerated computing and AI, and execute on the opportunities ahead. Our focus remains on serving our customers, partners, developers and shareholders.”
Reports of relationships preceded Huang’s departure
The announcement caps a turbulent week for Nvidia and its founder after reports emerged on Sunday that Huang had been romantically involved with Alice Huang, an executive at Singapore-based data centre company Megaspeed.
The New York Times reported that US intelligence agencies had identified her as having been recruited by China’s Ministry of State Security to gather information on Jensen Huang.
The Information reported that her relationship with Huang had helped facilitate at least $7.5 billion in Nvidia chip shipments to Chinese companies, citing two people familiar with her.
Huang acknowledged the relationship earlier this week, prompting Nvidia to investigate the matter and examine whether he had shared any company or national security information with her.
While the board initially expressed confidence in Huang following the reports, fresh revelations emerged on Wednesday.
The New York Times reported that Huang had also been romantically involved with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare.
The latest reports appeared to intensify pressure on the founder-CEO, with reports indicating that the board had met to discuss his potential removal.
“Jensen’s contributions to NVIDIA are profound. NVIDIA is one of the most consequential technology companies in the world. The Board and the company thank Jensen for his immeasurable contributions to the company and the industry,” Nvidia’s statement said.
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