WSJ: Nvidia's Board Is Preparing to Oust CEO Jensen Huang
Breaking: Nvidia’s board is preparing to oust CEO Jensen Huang after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy.
Context
Losing the founder who led Nvidia through the AI boom would shake the company whose chips power much of the AI boom.
Earlier in the week Jensen Huang told Nvidia employees he had an affair with Alice Huang, a former Megaspeed executive whom US officials suspect of spying for China, and Nvidia's board opened an independent review. On November 11 The New York Times reported a second relationship, with an Nvidia vice president. Hours later the Wall Street Journal reported that the board was preparing to remove him.
Deep dive
The Wall Street Journal posted on the evening of November 11 that Nvidia's board is preparing to oust CEO Jensen Huang after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy. This is a news report citing the paper's own reporting, not an announcement from Nvidia, and no decision had been announced when this deck was finalized.
The report came less than an hour after posts relaying a New York Times story. Pop Base wrote that the Times reported Huang had another affair with an executive at the company, and Joe Weisenthal wrote that the Times said the relationship was with Nvidia's vice president of health care.
Earlier in the week, according to X's news summaries of the coverage, Huang admitted in a company email to an affair with Alice Huang, a former executive at the Nvidia customer Megaspeed whom US officials suspect of working for Chinese intelligence. The summaries say Nvidia's board started an independent review, said it saw no evidence that secrets were compromised, and initially expressed confidence in his leadership. Republican lawmakers had also asked Huang for a closed door briefing on November 18.
Additional reporting, secondhand: the latest X news summary says the board met late Wednesday to consider removing him and that shares fell about 8% in after hours trading. The Kobeissi Letter, a market commentary account, publicly urged the board not to fire Huang and to consult shareholders first. These details come from summaries and commentary, not from Nvidia.
What to expect next
The key signal is an official statement from Nvidia's board on whether Huang stays, leaves, or steps aside while the review continues, and who would lead the company if he goes. Watch Nvidia's share price, any response from Huang himself, and whether large shareholders push for a vote as some investors are demanding. The November 18 briefing requested by lawmakers could also bring new details on the national security questions around the first relationship.