Nvidia board moves to oust Jensen Huang after affair probe

The latest:

Nvidia’s board is preparing to oust co-founder and chief executive Jensen Huang over two extramarital affairs, one of them with a woman U.S. intelligence officials suspect of working for Chinese intelligence, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal. Directors are planning to meet as soon as Wednesday to decide his future. Nvidia shares fell about 8% in after-hours trading.

Details:

• The investigation: The board acted after a company inquiry into Huang’s relationship with Alice Huang, an executive at Singapore-based data firm Megaspeed and a major Nvidia customer, people familiar with the matter said. U.S. intelligence officials believe she is working for China’s intelligence services.
• The admission: On Sunday, Huang acknowledged in a letter to staff that he had been unfaithful to his wife and apologized for violating the trust of his family and his employees. The letter concerned the relationship with Alice Huang, people familiar with the matter said.
• The second affair: Huang also had a relationship with Kimberly Powell, a senior Nvidia executive who runs the company’s healthcare business, a person familiar with the matter said. The New York Times reported that affair first. Powell did not respond to requests for comment.
• The market reaction: Shares slid about 8% after hours, extending a decline that began when the board’s investigation became public. Huang, 63, is Nvidia’s largest shareholder with roughly 3.6% of the company and ranks among the world’s wealthiest people.
• No successor: Huang has said he does not believe in succession planning, arguing leaders should pass on knowledge continuously. He has roughly 60 direct reports. It was not immediately clear who would replace him at one of the world’s most valuable companies.
• The company’s own warning: Nvidia’s latest proxy statement says the company is “highly dependent on the services of our longstanding executive team,” and warns that failed succession planning could hinder strategic planning, execution and long-term success.
• The federal inquiries: Megaspeed was among several firms using Nvidia chips to build AI data centers in Southeast Asia and suspected of diverting some products to China. The Commerce Department has investigated it since late 2024, and the Justice Department now leads multiple investigations involving Alice Huang.
• Nvidia’s earlier line: After an October report describing intelligence concerns that Alice Huang was a Chinese intelligence asset close to the CEO, an Nvidia spokesman said at the time there was nothing unusual or unexpected about the relationship.
• Trump’s defense: President Trump stood by Huang earlier this week, saying the CEO told him he did not know Alice Huang was a suspected spy, and calling him an amazing guy and an honorable man. Trump has built a close alliance with the Nvidia chief.
• The policy exposure: Trump approved shipments of Nvidia chips to China over security objections and adopted many of Huang’s policy positions. Lawmakers and other officials are now scrutinizing those decisions, according to people familiar with the matter.

Background:

The New York Times first reported the business connection between Jensen Huang and Alice Huang in October 2025. A later Times story that month documented intelligence concerns about her role, triggering the board review that has now reached the question of the chief executive’s survival.

Between the lines:

Nvidia’s own proxy language identifies the risk the board is about to take: a company that calls itself highly dependent on its longstanding executive team has no publicly identified successor, because its chief executive rejected succession planning. The after-hours drop suggests investors price Huang personally into the stock, and the federal investigations mean his exit would not close the China-diversion file.

What’s next

The board meeting, set for as soon as Wednesday, will decide Huang’s future. Watch for a successor announcement, the Justice Department investigations involving Alice Huang, and congressional scrutiny of Trump’s approvals of chip shipments to China.