Nvidia's board is preparing to remove founder and CEO Jensen Huang, who has led the company since it was founded in 1993, The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday. According to the report, the board could meet within days to decide. Nvidia did not respond to media requests for comment. According to Bloomberg, the company is working with an outside firm to identify possible candidates for the role.
The report came hours after The New York Times, citing five employees, reported that Huang had an affair with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's vice president of health care, who reports directly to him. That came days after Huang admitted to a relationship with Alice Huang, a Megaspeed executive whom US intelligence officials suspect of working for Chinese intelligence. That relationship prompted the board to open an independent investigation, and two Republican members of Congress said he could be subpoenaed if he does not attend a closed-door briefing.
Nvidia shares fell about 8% in after-hours trading on Wednesday and, according to Tom's Hardware, have lost about 20% since the affair began. The company has no stated succession plan: Huang has about 60 direct reports. Tom's Hardware names CFO Colette Kress as a possible interim CEO. As of publication, the board had not announced a decision.
