Jensen Huang has resigned as Nvidia’s president, CEO, and board member, effective immediately. His departure ends a run leading the company he co-founded in 1993.
Reuters reported the resignation, and Nvidia confirmed the change on November 12. Finance chief Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO while keeping her existing responsibilities. The board will consider candidates from inside and outside Nvidia for the permanent job.
Just four days earlier, Nvidia’s board publicly backed Huang while opening its investigation. Nvidia is now searching for its next permanent leader.
Colette Kress Takes Temporary Charge
Kress has led Nvidia’s finances since September 2013. She will hold both the interim CEO and CFO roles until a permanent successor is named. Harvey C. Jones becomes the company’s first board chair.
Jones says Nvidia expects its operations, customer commitments, and product roadmap to continue uninterrupted.
The Investigation Behind The Leadership Crisis
On November 8, Nvidia’s board announced an independent inquiry into reporting that Huang had been targeted by foreign intelligence. It said at the time that it had no reason to believe national security or company secrets had been compromised.
Huang separately apologized to employees for marital infidelity and pledged to cooperate with the review. The resignation announcement gives no explanation for his departure or findings from that investigation.
The exit follows reports that Nvidia’s board was weighing possible replacements. Our Jensen Huang rolling tracker follows the allegations, company statements, and congressional scrutiny that preceded it.
Nvidia’s November 17 financial results remain on the calendar. Kress is set to face that earnings call carrying both jobs: explaining the company’s finances while leading it through the search for Huang’s successor.
Photo: Maurizio Pesce / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Photographed January 5, 2017.
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