Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigns after reports of affairs and a suspected Chinese spy; Senate chairman asks him to testify Dec. 3

Jensen Huang is out as CEO of Nvidia. The company announced the resignation Thursday, Nov. 12. An SEC filing records it as effective Nov. 11.

Huang co-founded Nvidia in 1993 and ran it for 33 years. The exit followed reports of multiple extramarital affairs, including a relationship with a woman suspected of spying for China. Beijing has denied the espionage claims. The suspicion has not been established as fact.

What Nvidia has said

On Nov. 8, Nvidia said its board had opened an independent investigation into reports that Huang might have been targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. The company said it had no reason to believe national security or company secrets had been compromised.

Two days later, the independent directors hired former acting U.S. attorney Joon H. Kim and the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to run the probe. The company has not published findings.

CFO Colette Kress, who joined Nvidia in 2013, is interim CEO and keeps her finance duties. Director Harvey Jones is now the company's first chairman. The board has not named a permanent successor.

Washington wants answers

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C., sent letters Thursday asking Huang to testify voluntarily at a public hearing on Dec. 3. He wrote that the committee is prepared to use "all tools at our disposal, including subpoenas."

Scott also asked Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to appear Dec. 10 about the Commerce Department's role in writing and enforcing semiconductor export controls. "The American people deserve answers," Scott wrote on X.

On the House side, Foreign Affairs Committee sources told Fox News they are negotiating a date with Huang's team. Speaker Mike Johnson signaled he would back a subpoena if talks stall.

President Donald Trump, who presented Huang the National Medal of Science on Oct. 8, said Huang called him Wednesday. "He's going through hell," Trump told commentator Stephen A. Smith. Trump questioned whether Huang had to go at all. "The big thing is, was the woman a spy? And I don't know if that's been determined yet. But if the woman was a spy, yes. If the woman was not a spy, perhaps it would be different."

That is a different standard than the board applied. Nvidia's board acted while its own investigation was still open.

Analysts split on the damage

The business case is where opinions diverge.

Dan Ives of Yorkville Ives & Co. called the departure "a gut punch to the industry." He put Nvidia's value at $300 a share with Huang and $225 without him. Citi analysts Atif Malik and Papa Sylla cut their price target to $225 from $285, saying a leadership transition "creates an overhang on the stock."

Others expect little near-term change. Cody Acree of StoneX said production and deliveries are "designed, planned, booked, and scheduled" well into 2028. Ives says Nvidia is roughly two to three years ahead of its nearest competitor and controls about 90% of the GPU market.

Nathan Thooft of Manulife Investment Management pointed to the 40,000 other employees at Nvidia and said the board can tap talent inside the company. He also called the episode a lesson in governance and key-man risk.

William Blair analyst Sebastien Naji worries about something harder to model. "Without Huang, Nvidia loses the creative, relationship-driven dealmaking that has underpinned its market leadership over the last two years," he wrote. That includes financing customers, such as the $30 billion investment in OpenAI announced in February.

A big shareholder pushes back

Singapore-based billionaire Leo KoGuan, whose fortune Bloomberg's index puts at $13.2 billion, told Bloomberg in a text message: "No further investment without Jensen." He said he has put about $1.3 billion into Nvidia.

KoGuan did not say he would sell. His pledge covers future purchases only.

On X, he defended Huang as "the supreme creator" and wrote that "his strengths are far exceeding his weakness." He argued that Huang "has made mistakes but who hasn't," and demanded the board retain him. KoGuan also said Elon Musk, investor Gavin Baker and Trump had advised Huang to stay. Only Trump's remarks are confirmed in his own words, and they do not say he urged Huang to stay.

Musk wrote on X that hiring Huang would be "an honor," responding to another user. No job has been announced.

What comes next

The immediate test is Dec. 3. Huang has not publicly said whether he will appear before the Senate Banking Committee. Scott has put a subpoena on the table if he does not.

The Kim and Wachtell investigation will determine what the board says about whether any foreign operation reached Nvidia. Lutnick's Dec. 10 appearance, if he agrees, will put the Commerce Department's export-control enforcement on the record. Nvidia has also not said how long its CEO search will take.