How Jensen Huang’s Nvidia resignation unfolded

The story began with a U.S. investigation reported on Oct. 9, 2025, into whether Nvidia chips bought by Singapore-based computing provider Megaspeed had been diverted to China. Nvidia said then it had no reason to believe the chips had gone elsewhere. Singapore police were also examining possible local-law violations.

On Oct. 29, 2026, The New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence officials suspected former Megaspeed executive Alice Huang of gathering information for Beijing and had learned she was close to Jensen Huang. Nvidia called their contact routine customer meetings. The Times also said officials had briefed President Donald Trump about the relationship roughly a year earlier. On Nov. 5, chairs of three House committees asked Huang for a closed-door briefing on whether the relationship could have exposed sensitive U.S. technology or information.

The New York Times reported on Nov. 6 that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had overseen the drafting of a classified memo describing intelligence that China’s Ministry of State Security had recruited Alice Huang to target the Nvidia CEO. The Financial Times reported that officials believed the relationship was romantic. On Nov. 8, Huang told employees, “I was unfaithful to my wife,” apologized and said he would cooperate with an investigation. Nvidia’s independent directors opened a review with outside counsel, saying they had no reason at that point to believe national security or company secrets had been compromised.

Trump said on Nov. 9 that Huang told him he had not known Alice Huang was a spy, adding, “I really believe him.” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun called the accusation unsubstantiated. That day, Nvidia shareholder Mark Kistenmacher filed a proposed class action alleging the company and Huang misled investors. On Nov. 10, the directors hired former acting U.S. attorney Joon H. Kim and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to lead the investigation.

The New York Times reported on Nov. 11 that Huang had also had an affair with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare and one of his direct reports. The Wall Street Journal reported the company was preparing to remove him; Reuters said the board met that evening to discuss his future.

Alongside Huang’s departure, Nvidia named longtime director Harvey C. Jones its first board chair. Kress will retain her finance role while the board considers internal and external candidates for a permanent CEO. Singapore’s home affairs ministry said Alice Huang left the country in February and was barred from re-entering after a local investigation into possible offenses tied to server purchases and exports. It said there was insufficient evidence to establish an offense and that the inquiry was not about espionage. Megaspeed said it cooperated with U.S. inspections and hired a law firm to review its export compliance.

Nvidia’s quarterly results are scheduled for Nov. 17 at about 4:20 p.m. ET, followed by an earnings call at 5 p.m. ET—the first since Huang’s exit and Kress’s appointment.