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Nvidia’s board met on November 12 2026 to consider the future of chief executive Jensen Huang amid an independent investigation into his conduct, Reuters reported. The probe follows reports of extramarital affairs one involving a businesswoman alleged to have ties to Chinese intelligence, according to multiple outlets including the Financial Times. Huang has pledged to cooperate fully and the board initially expressed confidence in him but the discussions have now turned to potential leadership transition. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters the board weighed whether to remove the chief executive who has led the company since its founding in 1993.
The uncertainty has erased more than 450 billion dollars from Nvidia’s market value since November 8, Yahoo Finance data shows. Shares fell nearly 9 percent in after-hours trading on November 11 as the board meeting news emerged. Nvidia which closed November 11 at roughly 174 dollars per share remains a cornerstone of the artificial intelligence boom with its chips powering data centres worldwide. The selloff has also affected related stocks in the semiconductor and data centre sectors according to Reuters coverage of market reaction.
Nvidia has no formal public succession plan a point underscored by analysts at Bernstein who described key-man risk as an issue for the company. Reuters reported that investors and analysts favour chief financial officer Colette Kress as an interim option given her 13 years in the role and visibility on earnings calls. Senior engineer Ian Buck who heads the data centre business and helped develop the CUDA platform stands out as a strong long-term internal candidate according to industry observers. Josh Gilbert lead analyst at trading platform eToro described Kress as the obvious choice to steady the ship at a time when the market needs a familiar voice.
Co-founder Chris Malachowsky shares the longest tenure with Huang but focuses on fellow status rather than operations the BBC noted. Huang’s daughter Madison serves as senior director of product marketing after experience at LVMH while son Spencer also holds an executive post though both are seen as inexperienced for immediate succession. A former Nvidia employee told Business Insider that Buck already oversees the division responsible for virtually all current revenue. The lack of a clear internal heir apparent has amplified calls for the board to clarify its plans.
External possibilities include Arm chief executive Rene Haas a onetime Nvidia executive whose semiconductor expertise makes him a logical fit several analysts told Reuters. AMD chief Lisa Su has transformed her company into Nvidia’s chief rival and could bring turnaround experience though crossing to the competitor would be unusual TechCrunch stated. Other names mentioned range from former Apple leader Tim Cook to Google Cloud chief Thomas Kurian and Amazon Web Services head Matt Garman according to reports in Khaleej Times and Business Insider. Jun Bei Liu founder of Ten Cap told the BBC that an external hire might be considered for a permanent role after any initial internal appointment.
A DC Market Insights assessment found the global AI chip market reached 185 billion dollars in 2025 and is projected to expand at a 14 percent compound annual growth rate to 678 billion dollars by 2035. Nvidia’s GPUs accounted for 77 percent of that 2025 value the assessment showed underscoring the company’s central position. The leadership questions arrive as demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure continues to accelerate across data centres and enterprise applications. Yale School of Management professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld told Axios it is ridiculous that no one in management has been identified as a successor.
