Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is stepping down as CEO of the chipmaker he co-founded 33 years ago and built into a $4 trillion company that powered the artificial intelligence boom, the company announced Thursday.
CFO Colette Kress has been named interim CEO.
"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," said board chair Harvey Jones in a release announcing the news.
The company will begin the search for a permanent CEO to replace Huang and will consider both internal and external candidates, according to the release.
Kress also provided a statement in the release, but Huang was not quoted.
After a meteoric rise to fame due to Nvidia's central role in AI, Huang's dramatic fall has been even more rapid, following a series of stinging revelations about his romantic ties to a woman believed by the U.S. intelligence community to be a Chinese spy.
Huang, 63, apologized on Sunday for being "unfaithful to my wife," though he provided no details about the affair with businesswoman Alice Huang, who has worked for a Chinese company and Nvidia customer called Megaspeed. Late Wednesday, The New York Times reported that the Nvidia CEO also had a separate affair, this one with Kimberly Powell, vice president of health care at the chipmaker. Later that afternoon The Times and other outlets reported that Nvidia's board met to discuss the company's future.
Jensen Huang denied allegations that he had compromised national security or Nvidia secrets after reports of the Alice Huang affair. The news sparked concerns that Nvidia knew companies based in Singapore and Malaysia had been evading U.S. export controls in accessing its technology. The board said on Tuesday that it had hired Wachtell Lipton to investigate the intelligence allegations.
Huang's downfall also puts the spotlight on President Donald Trump, who formed a particularly close relationship with the CEO of what, until recently, was the world's most valuable company. Huang became a key voice on U.S. AI policy while pushing for issues that were in Nvidia's interest, such as preserving access to open-source AI, and lobbying to allow chip exports to China.
In May, Huang joined Trump on a trip to China, and in August, while on stage at the All-In Summit to discuss AI safety and regulation, he took a call from Trump and put him on speakerphone.
"I'm with you all the way," Trump told Huang and the audience.
With Democrats poised to take over both houses of Congress and promising to investigate various matters related to Nvidia, Huang's status in Washington, D.C. was poised to change dramatically even before the affairs became public.
Nvidia's fortunes exploded after OpenAI released ChatGPT in late 2022, leading to soaring demand for the chipmaker's graphics processing units, or GPUs. Nvidia's stock is up about 14-fold since then, even with a recent pullback related to the Huang scandal and the broader selloff in the AI trade.
Beyond its impact on Nvidia, Huang's departure has deep ramifications for the AI industry that has turned Huang into a global spokesperson and celebrity, traversing the globe in his trademark leather jacket, touting the power of the advanced chips, models and agents.
Huang has seeded the market with numerous companies that buy Nvidia GPUs, building his company's influence and establishing a deep roster of customers, beyond the hyperscalers. Nvidia has used its balance sheet to backstop leases and chip sales, and has become the centerpiece of the industry, acting as technology supplier, customer, investor, financier, and partner to scores of AI companies.
"He's Mr. AI. He speaks for the industry," said Jeff Christian, CEO of Christian and Timbers, an executive search firm. "He's connected financially to everybody either through partnerships, or through lending the money to buy chips."
- Nvidia live updates: CEO Jensen Huang resigns, Colette Kress named interim chief
- Nvidia stock falls 10% as CEO Jensen Huang announces resignation
- PRO: How far could Nvidia's stock fall on Huang's resignation? What investors need to know
- Elon Musk says it would be an ‘honor’ to hire Nvidia’s Jensen Huang
- Is Nvidia too big to fail? Its AI financing web raises the stakes: Analysis
Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas thanks Huang for 'bold leadership'
Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas shared a post on X thanking Huang for 33 years of "bold leadership." Nvidia is an investor in the company.
"You built a small startup into America's most valuable company, with relentless improvement," Srinivas wrote. "Your grit and perseverance should always be remembered. Your personal generosity with time and advice to founders like me has secured a bright future for America and AI."
—Ashley Capoot
2 Min AgoBinance's pardoned ex-CEO says Nvidia is making a mistake
Changpeng "CZ" Zhao, the co-founder of crypto exchange Binance, said Nvidia should not let Huang go.
"It's a mistake for Nvidia to let Jensen resign," Zhao wrote on X.
Zhao in 2023 resigned as CEO of Binance while pleading guilty to money-laundering-related charges. He was pardoned in October 2025 by Trump, who made roughly $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency-related ventures that year.
— Kevin Breuninger
5 Min AgoAnalysts have been slashing price targets
Since the dramatic revelations over the weekend, analysts have been slashing their price targets on Nvidia's stock in anticipation of major changes at the top ranks. At least 10 Wall Street analysts have turned more bearish this week, according to FactSet.
"With no successor publicly identified, we would focus on who leads and on what timeline, retention of senior leadership, and channel and export-compliance posture," analysts at Stifel wrote in a note on Wednesday. They lowered their target to $205 from $315, but kept their buy rating.
The stock is currently trading about $160.
Baird analysts on Wednesday cut their target price by more than half, from $500 to $200, and downgraded the stock to neutral, "until uncertainties regarding U.S. government action likely resulting from the upcoming congressional hearing are lifted."
—Ari Levy
13 Min AgoWarren says Huang still owes Congress answers after resignation
Ranking member Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen Senate Office Building on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty ImagesSen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said that Huang's resignation doesn't change the fact that Congress still needs answers.
"Jensen Huang's decision to resign does not absolve him, other executives, or the company as a whole of responsibility for putting our national security at risk," she said in a statement.
Warren, who is poised to lead the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, said that Huang and Nvidia's higher ups will still owe Congress an explanation about the company's compliance with export controls.
"It's clear that the American people cannot rely on Big Tech billionaire CEOs to put our national security above their bottom line," Warren said.
Warren also called on Congress to pass the AI Overwatch act, giving Congress oversight over advanced AI chip exports.
"Secretary Howard Lutnick and Under Secretary Jeffrey Kessler must explain why they have not closed export control loopholes and act today to ensure our advanced technology is not fueling China's military," Warren said.
— Irit Skulnik
14 Min AgoAMD, Broadcom gain as Nvidia slumps
Major Nvidia competitor Advanced Micro Devices rose 3% after Jensen Huang stepped down as CEO.
Broadcom jumped more than 5%, while Qualcomm rose about 1%. Intel, Marvell Technology and Micron Technology fell more than 2% each.
The iShares Semiconductor ETF tracking the sector dropped about 1%.
— Samantha Subin
25 Min AgoNeocloud shares tumble following Huang's resignation
watch nowVIDEO3:5903:59CoreWeave CEO Mike Intrator: The demand for computing infrastructure remains overwhelmingSquawk on the StreetShares of neoclouds, which heavily rely on Nvidia's GPUs, tumbled following Huang's resignation on Thursday.
CoreWeave's stock sank nearly 12%, IREN shares fell 8%, and Nebius' stock sank 17%.
Nebius reported third-quarter results on Thursday that beat analysts' expectations, but the company issued disappointing guidance.
—Ashley Capoot
29 Min AgoDan Ives: Kress can 'steady the ship' but company will need an outsider for the longer term
watch nowVIDEO3:3503:35Huang could cause further damage to Nvidia, 'it's hard to recover from that,' says Dan IvesFast MoneyColette Kress has taken the helm as interim CEO, but it's a role that will likely only last a year. That's according to Dan Ives, analyst at Yorkville Ives & Co., in an interview with CNBC before the news was announced.
"To steady the ship, she's the one," Ives said. "But longer term, probably someone from the outside."
Kress will likely be in the interim CEO role for about a year, Ives said.
"You need someone that's been on the global stage," Ives said. "Given the importance of the company not just in the U.S. tech industry but the global economy."
— Katie Tarasov
31 Min AgoBefore his resignation, Elon Musk said it 'would be an honor' to hire Jensen Huang
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX and owner of X, formerly known as Twitter, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang shake hands during National Design Studio's launch event for America.gov, a new AI-powered government website, at the Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., US, Sept. 29, 2026. Kylie Cooper | ReutersBefore Jensen Huang resigned from Nvidia, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk said, in a post on X, that it would be "an honor" to hire the embattled Nvidia founder.
Musk also agreed with Gavin Baker, chief investment officer of Atreides Management, who wrote in a post on X that "Nvidia's board should wait for the results of the investigation before ousting Jensen."
SpaceX is one of Nvidia's largest customers, and Nvidia invested in SpaceX via an equity investment in Musk's xAI, which is now known as SpaceXSI.
In August, during a SpaceX earnings call, Musk said Nvidia had the "best AI compute" and announced SpaceX would become an Nvidia-exclusive shop, using its Vera Rubin processors to build out massive data centers.
Musk and SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Huang's resignation.
—Lora Kolodny
35 Min AgoNvidia's stock plunges at the open
Nvidia's stock plunged over 13% at the open. The chip giant dropped below $4 trillion in market cap, accelerating a sharp decline so far this week. The move puts Nvidia on pace for its worst day since January 2025.
— Caleigh Keating and Nick Wells
40 Min AgoNvidia sheds $2 trillion in market value since October peak
Nvidia's market value has plunged by $2 trillion since the chipmaker's stock peaked in early October.
Shares closed at $173.73 on Wednesday, down from a closing high of $239.24 on Oct. 6.
Since Friday's close, Nvidia has lost more than $740 billion in market value.
— Samantha Subin, Nick Wells
44 Min AgoJim Cramer on Kress: ‘She is absolutely the one that you need right now’
watch nowVIDEO1:1401:14Jim Cramer on Nvidia interim CEO Colette Kress: 'She is absolutely the one that you need right now'Squawk on the Street45 Min AgoGreer, just before Huang ouster: U.S. is 'concerned,' but AI buildout won't stop
watch nowVIDEO3:2503:25Want 'crown jewel' chips to remain in U.S., allies' hands: U.S. Trade Rep. GreerSquawk BoxMinutes before Huang's ouster, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer suggested to CNBC that the U.S. AI buildout won't be dragged down by the scandal smothering Nvidia.
"Obviously, Nvidia is a structurally important company," Greer told "Squawk Box," acknowledging the AI giant's recent stock "fluctuations" in light of its CEO crisis.
"The reality is the AI buildout, data centers, the next industrial revolution — that's happening," he said.
"From time to time, you have scandal, or you have developments at companies with leadership, et cetera," Greer went on, noting that government regulators who monitor "potential problems" have taken action in recent years on "a variety of issues."
"And obviously, we remain concerned," he added. "We want to make sure that when we're selling our chips to the world, we want the world to be on the AI stack, but we want the crown jewels to remain in U.S. hands or in the hands of our allies."
— Kevin Breuninger
47 Min AgoIs Nvidia too big to fail?
CEO of Microsoft Satya Nadella, Dell Technologies CEO Michael Dell, AMD CEO Lisa Su, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, and Google co-founder Sergey Brin stand with U.S. President Donald Trump during the "A New Golden Age" summit at the US Institute of Peace, renamed The Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace by the Trump administration, in Washington, DC, US, Oct. 8, 2026. Evan Vucci | ReutersHuang's resignation is putting a spotlight on the web of financial relationships he built throughout the artificial intelligence agency. Nvidia's obligations to other firms — estimated at $400 billion — have earned the company the nickname "the central bank of AI." Problems at Nvidia have the potential to ripple out across the financial system through what are known as "circular financing" arrangements.
Officials at the Federal Reserve and elsewhere are watching closely but — for now — don't see any imminent danger to the financial system. Stock investors may take sharp losses, to be sure. But Nvidia is not "too big to fail in a bank sense at all," Sheila Bair, a former regulator and veteran of the financial crisis, told CNBC.
— Matt Peterson
49 Min AgoNvidia board will consider internal, external candidates in CEO search
The Nvidia headquarters in Santa Clara, California, US, on Monday, Nov. 9, 2026. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesNvidia's board will begin a search for a permanent CEO to replace Huang.
The company said it will consider both internal and external candidates in its search.
Analysts have pointed to several internal leaders as potential replacements for Huang, including CFO Kress; Ian Buck, Nvidia's VP and GM of Hyperscale; Bryan Catanzaro, VP of Applied Deep Learning; Chief Technology Officer Michael Kagan; and Bill Dally, Chief Scientist.
— Annie Palmer
1 Hour AgoNvidia sticks with Nov. 17 earnings report
Nvidia reiterated plans to announce fiscal third-quarter results on Nov. 17 despite the CEO transition.
The company plans to post results around 1:20 p.m. PT and host an earnings call at 2 p.m. PT.
— Samantha Subin
1 Hour AgoNvidia names Harvey C. Jones as board chair
Nvidia named Harvey C. Jones to serve as its "first-ever" board chair.
He joined Nvidia's board in 1993, and is a former CEO and chairman of chip-design software maker Synopsys. He also co-founded two other technology companies, Daisy Systems and Tensilica, and since 2004, Jones has been a managing partner at Square Weave Ventures, a private investment firm.
— Annie Palmer
1 Hour AgoWhat to know about Nvidia's interim CEO
Nvidia's Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress poses for a photo in an unknown location.Nvidia | Via ReutersNvidia's new interim CEO Colette Kress has worked at the artificial intelligence chipmaker since September 2013 and currently serves as executive vice president and finance chief.
Before Nvidia, Kress held senior roles at Microsoft and worked as finance chief within Cisco's business tech and operations finance unit. She also did a stint at Texas Instruments.
Kress holds a finance degree from the University of Arizona and a master's in business administration from Southern Methodist University.
The company said Kress will continue to serve as Executive Vice President and CFO while acting as interim CEO until a permanent successor has been named.
— Samantha Subin
1 Hour AgoNvidia board thanks Huang
"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."
—Chris Eudaily
1 Hour AgoWorst slump for stock since 2012
Nvidia's stock this yearNvidia shares are headed for their sixth straight weekly drop, the longest slump since 2012. That includes a 9% decline last week tied to the midterm election results.
As of Wednesday's close, the shares were down about 7% this year, the steepest slide among all the tech megacaps other than Tesla. Because of the selloff, Nvidia has fallen behind Apple in the ranks of the world's largest companies.
— Ari Levy
1 Hour AgoRise to 'Jensanity'
C.C. Wei, CEO of TSMC, and Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, interact with fans during TSMC’s annual sports day in Hsinchu, Taiwan, Nov. 8, 2025. Ann Wang | ReutersHuang was born in Taiwan but grew up in the U.S. and is an American citizen. He founded Nvidia to make chips for computer graphics, both for video games and rendering. In the early 2000s, Huang and other executives saw an opportunity to allow scientists to use the company's GPUs to do computationally-intense work.
That technology eventually allowed Nvidia's chips to transform from a leading player in video game technology to the most important player in AI and a key American asset for national defense.
His fame in Taiwan is so great than when he returns home, "Jensanity" surrounds him.
— Kif Leswing
