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Nvidia said on Sunday it is probing whether CEO Jensen Huang has been the target of a “foreign intelligence effort,” after a media report alleged he had a close relationship with a Chinese businesswoman who passed information to Beijing.
Huang admitted in a message to employees that he had been unfaithful to his wife and took “full responsibility” for his actions, while Nvidia said the CEO was committed to continuing to lead the company without interruption.
The developments are likely to pressure the chipmaker’s stock, which has already seen sharp declines recently amid worries about AI sustainability, and may also raise questions about Huang’s future at the helm of the company he co-founded.
The New York Times reported last month that Huang had a relationship with a former executive of a Singapore-based company whom U.S. authorities investigated and concluded was a Chinese intelligence asset.
“The Nvidia board is initiating an independent investigation in light of recent reporting that founder and CEO Jensen Huang has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort. A committee of independent directors, assisted by outside independent counsel, will oversee the investigation,” the company said.
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The multinational tech company said on Sunday that while its board has no reason to believe that either U.S. national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised, its inquiry will examine all available information.
The board has confidence in the CEO and his leadership team, Nvidia said, adding that Huang fully supports the review and has committed to co-operating with it.
‘He’s an honourable guy,’ Trump says
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday he had not spoken to Huang about the allegations but called him a fine person.
“I hope everything’s fine. He’s done such an incredible job,” Trump added.
When asked if he believed he should have acted on intelligence when he was briefed about it, Trump said: “No, I don’t think so. I think he’s an honourable guy. I think he probably has an excuse for it. You have to hear it.”
Huang and U.S. President Donald Trump are shown in Washington on Oct. 8. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/The Associated Press)
The New York Times had reported that Trump was briefed about the intelligence findings roughly a year ago and chose not to do anything with the information.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio declined to comment on Huang when asked by reporters on Sunday evening.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Huang, who founded the company in 1993, said he was “committed to protecting Nvidia and supporting America’s national security.”
‘Black eye moment for Jensen’
The investigation adds to pressure on Nvidia at a time investors are already pulling back from uncertainty over the sustainability of the artificial intelligence market, in which the company is a leader.
The $4.5-trillion US chipmaker’s shares have given up all of their gains this year amid a broader tech market rout triggered by worries over AI sustainability.
“There is clearly risk that Jensen could be removed as CEO depending on the board investigation, and this will add risk to the stock as he is so important to the Nvidia story and strategy globally,” said Dan Ives, partner and senior managing director at Yorkville Ives & Co.
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“This is a black eye moment for Jensen and will spark multiple congressional inquiries at a minimum and will create an overhang on the stock,” Ives said, adding that the news would also increase major scrutiny about selling chips to China.
Huang admitted to having been unfaithful to his wife, saying, “My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry.”
Addressing his colleagues, board, partners and shareholders, Huang said: “My responsibility is to serve you and be worthy of your trust. I have fallen short of that responsibility. I am fully committed to Nvidia and will work to earn back your confidence.”
Huang delivers a speech at a company event in Berlin on Oct. 21. (Markus Schreiber/The Associated Press)
In late October, he told Bloomberg News that his relationship and interactions with the Chinese businesswoman were “completely normal and not unusual.”
Josh Gilbert, lead analyst at trading platform eToro, said Huang’s fingerprints were on every part of the company’s rise, so any doubt over his position would matter to shareholders.
“While the investigation is likely to dent sentiment, it won’t alter anything long term unless it leads to a change at the top, at which point it becomes a completely different ball game,” Gilbert said.
Lawmakers express security concerns
Top Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have already called on Huang to brief Congress this month about the New York Times report.
The newspaper’s story raises “significant national security concerns regarding [China’s] access to sensitive U.S. technology and information,” the Republican lawmakers said in a letter dated Nov. 4. “It is vital that Congress determines the extent to which U.S. national security has been placed at risk.”
U.S. export controls since 2022 have sought to restrict China’s access to advanced Nvidia chips and the equipment needed to make them.