Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigns amid spy affair claims

Jensen Huang built Nvidia into the company every AI startup depends on for chips. On Thursday, Nvidia's board said he had resigned as CEO, effective immediately. The move came after reports of two affairs. One was with a woman U.S. officials suspect China recruited to get close to him. The other was with a senior Nvidia employee. Nvidia's CFO, Colette Kress, is now interim CEO.

Huang wasn't just a founder. He was Nvidia's public face and its chief salesman. He convinced the whole industry to spend hundreds of billions on Nvidia chips. Losing him right as Washington debates whether to let Nvidia sell advanced chips to China is awkward timing. China's government calls the spy allegations groundless, and nobody has published hard evidence tying the affair to actual espionage. Congress wants Huang to explain himself directly. He's agreed to testify, though no date is set yet.

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Can Nvidia run smoothly without the one person investors always tied to its success? Huang's testimony could reveal something new. Or it could just confirm what's already been reported. Either way, it will shape how much more this costs Nvidia's stock. It will also shape the broader fight over selling AI chips to China.