Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigned on Thursday after reports that he had several extramarital relationships, including one with a woman who reports to him and another with a suspected agent from China.
In a statement, Nvidia said that “Colette Kress, current Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of NVIDIA, has agreed to serve as Interim Chief Executive Officer.”
Huang, 63, co-founded the company and has been its CEO for the past 33 years.
His departure comes days after the company’s board said it would investigate whether Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort after reports of his relationship with a woman U.S. officials believe is a Chinese spy. Late Wednesday, The New York Times reported that the CEO also had an affair with an executive at Nvidia who reports to him.
Huang is largely responsible for sparking the artificial intelligence boom, CNN reported. The chips made by the company he founded in 1993 have become a crucial part of AI infrastructure, placing Nvidia at the forefront of the artificial intelligence buildout, the cable news outlet reported.
Shares of Nvidia fell 10% in premarket trading Thursday, according to The Associated Press.
The company’s board appointed Harvey C. Jones as Nvidia’s first-ever chairman, the Times reported. Jones served as chief executive and executive chairman of Synopsys.
Nvidia recognized Huang in a statement, according to the newspaper.
“Jensen’s contributions to Nvidia are profound. Nvidia is one of the most consequential technology companies in the world,” the statement read. “The board and the company thank Jensen for his immeasurable contributions to the company and the industry.”
In 2022, the company was worth $305 billion, the Times reported. By 2026, it was near a valuation of $6 trillion.
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