Nvidia Launches Probe After CEO Jensen Huang Confirms Affair With Chinese Executive
The board is examining whether the relationship with a Megaspeed buyer compromised company secrets, while the CEO remains in his role.
By Priya Marino ·
Nvidia has opened an internal investigation into its chief executive, Jensen Huang, following reports that he was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. The company's board of directors announced the move on Saturday. The probe comes after Huang told the board he had been intimate with a Chinese business executive whom US intelligence agencies determined was gathering information for Beijing.
Huang sent a message to the company acknowledging the relationship. He stated, “I was unfaithful to my wife.” He added, “My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry.” The board said it has “no reason to believe that either national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised,” but the inquiry will examine all available information.
The relationship involves Alice Huang, a Chinese citizen and chip buyer. The two executives are not related. Alice Huang previously worked as a television reporter in China before becoming a top executive at Megaspeed, a Singapore-based data center company. Megaspeed has become one of Nvidia’s biggest customers in southeast Asia. The company purchased more than $4.8 billion worth of Nvidia chips over the past two years.
Huang, who is 63, will remain chief executive during the investigation. He “fully supports the review and has committed to co-operating with it,” according to the board. The New York Times first reported the details of the relationship last month. US intelligence agencies determined that Alice Huang was feeding information directly to Beijing.
President Donald Trump addressed the situation at his Halloween party on October 31. He called the matter “very complex” and said he hoped everything was okay with Huang, who serves on the president’s Council of Advisers on Science and Technology. The president described Huang as “smart” and “amazing,” and insisted that Huang accompany him on foreign trips. Trump told reporters the administration would look into the matter “very closely.”
Nvidia is the world’s most valuable company. Its high-end chips have become central to artificial intelligence development, and the company has surpassed Wall Street earnings expectations for the past three years. The stock has seen sharp declines recently amid concerns about the sustainability of AI investments. The new probe may raise further questions about Huang’s future leading the company he co-founded.
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