Nvidia Board Launches Review of CEO's Affair With Chinese Executive

Nvidia announced on Sunday that its board of directors has opened an investigation into the personal conduct of CEO Jensen Huang. The review will determine whether the chief executive was targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. This decision follows Huang's acknowledgment to the board that he maintained an intimate relationship with a specific business executive.

The New York Times reported that U.S. intelligence agencies identified Alice Huang, a Chinese citizen, as the individual gathering information for Beijing. Alice Huang serves as a top executive at Megaspeed, a Singapore-based data center firm. According to the report, Megaspeed purchased more than $4.8 billion in Nvidia chips over the past two years. The two Huangs are not related.

Jensen Huang addressed the company's workforce in a letter obtained by The Associated Press. He stated that he was unfaithful to his wife and apologized to his family and colleagues. He claimed to take full responsibility for his actions. Leading Nvidia is the privilege of my life, Huang wrote. My responsibility is to serve you and be worthy of your trust. I have fallen short of that responsibility.

The board stated it has no reason to believe that national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised. However, the inquiry will examine all available information. Huang fully supports the review and has committed to cooperating with it, the board noted. He will remain CEO during the investigation.

John Rizzo, a company spokesperson, said the news will not slow Nvidia. Jensen is committed to continuing to lead Nvidia as CEO without interruption, Rizzo said. Nvidia remains the world's most valuable company. The firm reported quarterly profits of $59.69 billion in August.

President Donald Trump praised the CEO on Sunday before returning to the White House. He said he had not spoken to Huang about the latest development. I hope everything's fine then, Trump said. He's done such an incredible job. Asked if he would bring the CEO on his upcoming trip to Asia, Trump said he was open to it.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio declined to comment on the matter as he departed for a G7 meeting in Paris. I just can't comment because of the nature of it, Rubio told reporters. He also noted the difficulty of addressing an internal corporate matter. Huang serves on the president's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

Nvidia's advanced processors have been a focus of U.S. export restrictions aimed at limiting China's access to cutting-edge semiconductor technology. The company's chips power many of the data centers used to train and run AI models. The board's review aims to clarify the extent of the relationship and its implications for the company's position in the global artificial intelligence race.