Nvidia’s board is preparing to oust CEO Jensen Huang, the company’s founder, after he had two extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Chinese spy, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
The Journal said the board is preparing to meet as soon as Wednesday to determine his future. The report, which describes the move as following the company’s investigation into Huang’s affair with a Chinese woman alleged to be a spy, landed hours after the New York Times reported that Huang had a second relationship, with a senior executive who reports to him. The reports are based on anonymous sources, and Nvidia’s board has not publicly announced any decision.
A Rapid Escalation
The WSJ report marks a sharp turn in a scandal that has moved quickly in under two weeks. On October 29, the Times reported that U.S. officials believe Alice Huang, a Megaspeed executive who is no relation to Jensen, was a Chinese intelligence asset who had cultivated a close relationship with him. Days later, the Financial Times reported that the two were romantically involved, citing a U.S. government memo.
On November 8, Huang admitted to employees in a memo that he had been unfaithful to his wife and said he would earn back the company’s confidence. The same day, Nvidia’s board launched an independent investigation and said it had confidence in his leadership and no reason to believe national security or company secrets had been compromised. The allegations against Alice Huang remain unproven, and China has denied them.
On Wednesday, the Times then reported that Huang also had a relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare, who reports to him. The paper, citing five people who worked at the company, said the pair were captured on video being affectionate at a San Jose hotel during the company’s GTC conference in March. The Times said it has not seen the video, and the claims have not been confirmed by Nvidia, Huang or Powell.
Why The Second Affair Matters
The first affair raised national security questions, and the board’s investigation, led by the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, was focused on whether sensitive information passed through that relationship. The Powell report raises a separate governance problem: whether the chief executive of the world’s most valuable company had a relationship with a direct report. Nvidia’s code of conduct tells employees to avoid conflicts arising from personal relationships, and many companies bar managers from relationships with subordinates.
The reported move toward an ouster also reverses the board’s earlier stance. Just days ago, it said it retained confidence in Huang.
Pressure From All Sides
Huang has been under pressure from Washington and the markets alike. Three House Republican committee chairs have asked him to appear for a closed-door briefing by November 18. Huang has also withdrawn from public appearances, including the ElevenLabs Summit in New York.
He has had some high-profile backing. Elon Musk called him irreplaceable for American AI leadership, and President Donald Trump said Huang told him he had no idea Alice Huang was a spy.
Nvidia’s shares closed Wednesday’s regular session up about 2.9%, but fell roughly 8% in after-hours trading as the two reports emerged.
What It Would Mean For Nvidia
Huang co-founded Nvidia in 1993 and has led it from a graphics chip maker to the dominant supplier of AI chips. He is also one of the most visible figures in the AI industry and a key voice in Washington on chip export policy, so removing him would be a major event for the company and for the AI sector. It is not clear from the reports who would replace him, or whether the board has settled on a decision. What happens next depends on whether the board meets as planned, and on what its investigation concludes.
This article is based on reporting by The Wall Street Journal, which cited unnamed people familiar with the matter. The claims have not been independently verified, and the board has not publicly announced any decision on Huang’s future. The report about a relationship with Kimberly Powell comes from The New York Times and has not been confirmed by Nvidia, Huang or Powell.