Nvidia Board Prepares to Oust CEO Jensen Huang Amid Dual-Affair Scandal and National Security Probe

California: Nvidia is facing an unprecedented leadership and governance crisis as its board of directors prepares to remove co-founder and long-time chief executive Jensen Huang following revelations of two separate extramarital relationships—one involving a suspected Chinese intelligence operative and another with a direct subordinate inside the company. 

According to The Wall Street Journal, Nvidia’s board is actively preparing to oust the 63-year-old executive and could meet imminently to decide his fate, though no official announcement has been made. The rapid escalation marks a dramatic reversal from just days earlier, when directors publicly expressed confidence in Huang and indicated he would remain at the helm while an external probe ran its course. 

How the Scandal Unfolded?

The crisis began unfolding publicly in late October and escalated rapidly over the past two weeks across two distinct fronts:

October 29 – First Reports Surface: Media reports revealed that U.S. intelligence officials had been investigating an alleged romantic relationship between Huang and Alice Huang (also known as Huang Le), a former top executive at Singapore-based data centre firm Megaspeed.

U.S. intelligence authorities reportedly suspected Alice Huang—who is unrelated to the Nvidia CEO—of acting as an asset for China's Ministry of State Security to extract confidential details regarding advanced AI chips and U.S. government policy. At the time, Nvidia dismissed the reports, stating that Huang’s interactions with customer executives were routine.

November 8 – Public Admission and Independent Probe: Facing mounting pressure, Huang sent a company-wide email to employees admitting he had been unfaithful to his wife, apologising to his family and staff, and pledging full cooperation with an inquiry.

That same day, Nvidia’s board announced an independent investigation into whether the company had been targeted by a foreign intelligence effort, noting it had no initial reason to believe company secrets or national security were compromised.

November 10 – High-Powered Counsel Retained: The independent members of Nvidia’s board, led by lead independent director Stephen Neal, formally retained former acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim and the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct the investigation.

November 11 – The Second Affair Emerges: Just as the board appeared poised to stand behind Huang during the inquiry, The New York Times reported that Huang had also engaged in a second extramarital relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s 48-year-old vice president of healthcare.

Citing five former employees, the report stated that Powell—who has worked at Nvidia since 2008 and reports directly to Huang—was filmed showing affection with the CEO at a San Jose hotel during Nvidia’s annual developer conference in March.

According to the report, Huang’s security detail intervened and offered the person who recorded the footage a confidentiality agreement. Hours later, The Wall Street Journal reported that the board was preparing to remove Huang.

National Security and Governance Fallout

The dual allegations have created both severe geopolitical exposure and acute internal governance failures for the world's second-most valuable listed company:

Chip Diversion and Espionage Probes: Megaspeed’s Malaysian sister company purchased more than $4.8 billion worth of Nvidia-powered equipment between June 2024 and February 2026. U.S. authorities suspect the firm of illegally diverting restricted AI chips to China.

An inquiry initiated by the Commerce Department in late 2024 has since expanded into multiple Justice Department investigations involving Alice Huang. Beijing has denied the espionage allegations.

Workplace Conflict of Interest: While Nvidia’s code of conduct does not strictly prohibit workplace romances, it explicitly warns against conflicts of interest stemming from personal relationships.

Because Powell reports directly to Huang, the relationship—coupled with alleged efforts by corporate security to suppress video evidence—crossed a critical corporate governance threshold for independent directors.

As of Thursday morning, Nvidia has not announced a formal leadership change, though fallout is rippling across Washington, Wall Street, and the tech sector:

Market Turmoil: Nvidia shares plunged roughly 8 per cent in U.S. after-hours trading following the ouster report, dragging down Nasdaq futures and AI infrastructure partners such as Micron and CoreWeave, while rival chipmakers AMD and Broadcom saw gains.

Legal and Congressional Scrutiny: Top Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, have signalled interest in pursuing congressional inquiries into the national security implications.

Meanwhile, at least one shareholder has already filed suit against Nvidia and Huang, alleging the company misled investors when initially downplaying media reports.

Succession Uncertainty: Kimberly Powell has abruptly cancelled a scheduled speaking appearance at the Milken Future of Health Summit. Meanwhile, Nvidia’s 10 independent directors face a daunting succession dilemma.

Under Nvidia’s bylaws, a majority of the board can vote to remove Huang—who holds a board seat and roughly 3.6 per cent of company shares—and appoint an interim chief executive.

However, because Huang operates a famously flat corporate structure with more than 60 direct reports and no groomed heir apparent, analysts warn that removing Nvidia’s only CEO since its 1993 founding carries massive operational risk for the AI industry.