Following the launch of an independent investigation into CEO Jensen Huang just three days ago, the Nvidia board is reportedly gearing up to boot the executive. The high-stakes meeting is set to take place as early as today, November 11. The gathering comes in response to allegations made by The Wall Street Journal, claiming that Huang had an extramarital affair with Alice Huang, a suspected Chinese spy. This affair was initially reported by The New York Times, and the company issued a statement on Sunday confirming the investigation.
According to recent reports from The New York Times, Huang was also involved in a second affair with an executive who directly reported to him. In response to the unfolding situation, Nvidia's board stated that they prioritize U.S. national and economic security, which is critical to the interests of Nvidia and its shareholders. While there are no current claims that either national security or company secrets were compromised, the board's inquiry will examine all available information. Jensen Huang has expressed his support for the review and commitment to cooperating with it.
In a letter obtained by the BBC, Huang admitted to being unfaithful and apologized for causing distress to his wife and children. Given that Huang is widely regarded as the face of AI in the U.S., it's not surprising that Nvidia's board wants to address this situation promptly. With nearly every AI model currently running powered by Nvidia chips, a security breach of this scale would pose a massive liability for the company. As a co-founder of Nvidia and the CEO since 1993, Huang's removal could have significant implications for the tech giant. IGN has reached out to Nvidia for comment and will update this story as soon as communication is received.
[Photo by Joel Saget / AFP via Getty Images]
Jackie Thomas, Senior Tech Editor at IGN and the queen of PC components, has been covering gaming hardware for over a decade, writing for publications such as IGN, TechRadar, Gizmodo, PC Gamer, and more. You can follow her on Twitter @Jackiecobra.