Key Notes
- The Wall Street Journal reports that NVIDIA directors are preparing to remove Jensen Huang, while Reuters separately reports that the board was meeting to consider his future.
- Bloomberg says directors are working with an outside firm on potential replacements and weighing an interim chief executive.
- NVIDIA has not announced a leadership change, and its independent investigation has not published findings.
NVIDIA is facing the prospect of losing the only chief executive it has ever had. The Wall Street Journal reported on November 11 that directors were preparing to remove Jensen Huang, escalating a personal-conduct controversy into a succession crisis at the center of the AI industry.
Reuters separately reported, citing a person familiar with the matter, that the board was meeting Wednesday to decide his future. NVIDIA did not immediately respond to the news agency’s request for comment. The company had not announced a leadership change as of Thursday morning, November 12.
Bloomberg reported that directors were working with an outside firm to identify potential replacements and considering a temporary chief executive while searching for a permanent successor. That account, also based on an unnamed source, describes contingency planning rather than an appointment.
A Second Allegation Raises the Pressure
The latest developments followed a New York Times report alleging that Huang had a relationship with Kimberly Powell, NVIDIA’s vice president of healthcare, who reports to him. The Times cited five people who worked at the company, according to Reuters’ account. The allegation has not been independently verified by AIstify.
That report concerns a different person from Alice Huang, the former Megaspeed executive named in earlier reporting about a suspected Chinese intelligence operation. As AIstify reported, Jensen Huang acknowledged infidelity in a November 8 employee letter without identifying the woman involved. His admission did not establish the separate intelligence allegations.
On November 8, the board said it had confidence in Huang and no reason to believe national security or NVIDIA’s secrets had been compromised. Independent directors subsequently appointed former acting US Attorney Joon H. Kim and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct the inquiry. Their November 10 update did not announce findings.
The Challenge of Replacing NVIDIA’s Founder
The succession reports reversed NVIDIA’s Wednesday rebound. Shares closed the regular session up 2.87% at $173.73, then traded at $158.84 at 8 p.m. Eastern time, down 8.57%, in MarketScreener’s quote data. MarketSpeaker tracked the reversal as the discussion shifted from the investigation to who might lead the company.
Huang has led NVIDIA since co-founding it in 1993, according to his official biography. His influence extends well beyond public appearances. MarketSpeaker examined his unusually flat organization, with around 60 direct reports and technical decisions made through discussions across disciplines.
Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon has drawn a distinction between managing daily operations and reproducing Huang’s long-term strategic judgment. As MarketSpeaker noted, his concern centers on future direction, partnerships and employee retention. Those are risks associated with a possible transition, rather than evidence that NVIDIA’s current products or customer commitments have changed.
A Leadership Question Before Earnings
NVIDIA has scheduled its fiscal third-quarter results for November 17, followed by an analyst call at 5 p.m. Eastern time. The event puts the company’s financial performance alongside an unresolved governance question: whether directors will retain Huang, install an interim leader or announce another succession plan.
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