After weeks of headlines about an affair with an alleged Chinese intelligence asset, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has stepped down from his leadership position at the computer hardware company. Nvidia announced the decision on Thursday morning in a press release that described the company’s next steps. Replacing Huang is Colette Kress, the current executive vice president and chief financial officer of Nvidia. Kress will be serving in an interim capacity until Nvidia finds a permanent successor.
Within video games, Nvidia is known as the company that powers computer graphics chips that make PC and console gaming possible. More broadly, Nvidia designs and is responsible for the vast majority of computer chips used for artificial intelligence. Nvidia’s products are highly in demand, and their scarcity has contributed to higher prices for gaming consoles and peripherals. Thanks to the AI boom, Nvidia and its multi-trillion-dollar valuation have made it one of the biggest and most important companies in the world.
Nvidia was originally founded by Jensen Huang in 1993, and the executive has been central to the company’s public identity ever since. Back in October 2026, Huang was reported to be at the center of a Chinese spy plot. According to the New York Times, an intelligence asset named Alice Huang developed a close relationship with the Nvidia CEO with the apparent intention of directing more of the company’s computer chips to China. The intelligence asset also reportedly sent information she learned directly to China. The tech mogul has since been accused of having an affair with another Nvidia executive who reported directly to him — an act that violated the tech company’s code of conduct.
Though these are matters involving Huang’s personal life, his position in the world of AI — the United States government’s efforts to prevent China from gaining a technological advantage — have made the affair a matter of national security. Beyond his position at Nvidia, Huang is considered a close ally of President Donald Trump. The cheating allegations have also had a direct impact on Nvidia’s business, and the company is expected to lose $700 billion as a result.
Who is the suspected Chinese spy, Alice Huang?
Huang is an employee of Megaspeed, a company that did business with Nvidia. She is known as a businesswoman and an investor, and had been pictured with Jensen Huang as far back as June 2024. She reportedly flaunted her connection to Nvidia’s CEO to raise money for her business ventures, the NYT reports.
When the story originally broke, Nvidia’s spokespeople tried to downplay Jensen’s ties to Huang by framing it as an ordinary business relationship where no sensitive information was ever shared. The company stated that the government had not warned Nvidia of a potential threat, nor had it given Jensen a type of defense briefing that is common when dealing with foreign intelligence plots. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C. decried the accusations as baseless smears, the NYT reported.
Here’s Nvidia on Huang’s resignation:
Kress has served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of NVIDIA since joining the company in September 2013. During her tenure, she has led the company’s finance organization and has played a key role in NVIDIA’s growth and evolution. Prior to joining NVIDIA, Kress spent nearly 25 years in finance roles at leading technology companies, including Cisco and Microsoft.
The Board of Directors appointed Harvey C. Jones as its first-ever Chair of the Board. Mr. Jones has been an entrepreneur, technology executive, and active venture investor for over 30 years, including serving as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman of Synopsys.
“Colette has helped lead NVIDIA through a period of extraordinary growth and has a deep understanding of our business, customers, operations and financial position,” said Harvey Jones, Chair of the NVIDIA Board of Directors. “She is supported by an experienced leadership team that has been instrumental in executing NVIDIA’s strategy and advancing its technology roadmap. The Board has full confidence in Colette and the leadership team, and we expect the company’s operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption.”
“NVIDIA’s strength has always come from its people, and together with our leadership team, I am committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years,” said Colette Kress, Interim CEO and CFO, NVIDIA. “We will continue advancing the work that has made NVIDIA a leader in accelerated computing and AI, and execute on the opportunities ahead. Our focus remains on serving our customers, partners, developers and shareholders.”
Jensen’s contributions to NVIDIA are profound. NVIDIA is one of the most consequential technology companies in the world. The Board and the company thank Jensen for his immeasurable contributions to the company and the industry.
