Nvidia CEO and cofounder Jensen Huang’s admission to having an extramarital affair has triggered an independent investigation into the billionaire businessman.
The affair has also raised questions about whether Huang will remain the CEO of the $4.5 trillion AI chipmaker, though the company’s board has said it has confidence in his leadership.
The New York Times has reported that US intelligence officials believe the woman at the center of the scandal, Alice Huang — who has been an executive at Nvidia customer Megaspeed — was recruited to gather information about the company’s operations for the Chinese government.
Here is a timeline of events that led to Jensen Huang’s bombshell disclosure — and its aftermath:
Rubio’s classified warning memo
Secretary of State Marco Rubio oversaw the drafting of a “highly classified” memo in the spring warning about the Nvidia CEO’s relationship, The New York Times reported.
The Times reported that the memo was based on electronic surveillance of Alice Huang. The memo was later shared among top Trump administration officials, according to The Times.
Jensen Huang boards Air Force One
Jensen Huang was not among the initial list of top executives set to join President Donald Trump for his May visit to China. News organizations pointed out the curious absence given that the Nvidia CEO had joined Trump on similar occasions.
In a seemingly last-minute decision, Huang joined the trip when Air Force One made a refueling stop in Alaska. Trump published a Truth Social post calling out CNBC for reporting Huang’s absence.
“Jensen is currently on Air Force One and, unless I ask him to leave, which is highly unlikely, CNBC’s reporting is incorrect or, as they say in politics, FAKE NEWS!” Trump wrote in the May 12 post.
Huang’s name was not on a list of business executives that were part of a US delegation that a White House official sent Business Insider at the time. The Nvidia CEO later told reporters that Trump “asked me to come,” CNBC reported.
Chinese spy allegations emerge
Questions about Jensen Huang’s relationship came to light in October.
On October 29, the Times reported that US officials had concluded that Alice Huang, or Huang Le, was “a Chinese intelligence asset” who “had developed a close relationship” with Jensen Huang.
The Times article included photos of the pair at a party in June 2024, which the publication said had been posted on LinkedIn. The article also recounted that in May 2025, Alice Huang had waited behind the Nvidia CEO as he spoke to reporters after leaving a restaurant in Taipei.
Nvidia calls meetings ‘not unusual’
Nvidia spokesperson John Rizzo was quoted in the Times report as saying, “Jensen’s interactions with Ms. Huang are not unusual or unexpected. Meetings with customers are part of a C.E.O.’s job; Jensen talks with thousands of customer executives every year.”
Jensen Huang downplays interactions
The Nvidia CEO echoed the company’s statements, downplaying his interactions with Alice Huang as routine business.
“Our relationship, our interactions, have been related to Megaspeed, and it was all completely normal and not unusual,” he told Bloomberg News in a report published October 29.
Jensen Huang also told the publication that the US government hadn’t told him about its concerns about Alice Huang, confirming another aspect of the Times reporting. In its initial story, the Times reported that the Nvidia CEO had not received “defensive briefings,” the term for such formal warnings sometimes communicated to business leaders.
House GOP leaders seek briefing
Three House Republican committee chairs sent a letter to Jensen Huang on November 4 asking him to appear for a joint closed-door meeting about his interactions with Alice Huang.
“Recent reports raise significant national security concerns regarding the PRC’s access to sensitive U.S. technology and information. The issue of PRC infiltration and access to cutting-edge U.S. technology is core to the investigative work of our three committees this Congress,” the letter read. “It is vital that Congress determines the extent to which U.S. national security has been placed at risk.”
The letter, which described Alice Huang as a “publicly reported People’s Republic of China (PRC) intelligence asset,” asked for a November 18 meeting.
Jensen Huang admits infidelity
In a November 8 internal memo to employees, Jensen Huang said he had been “unfaithful” to his wife of more than 40 years and said that his actions “hurt her and our children.”
“I owe my family and all of you an apology,” he wrote, adding, “There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry.”
Nvidia opens probe
The same day, Nvidia’s board of directors announced it was opening an investigation into whether Jensen Huang was the “target of a foreign intelligence effort.”
The board said a committee of independent directors, assisted by outside independent counsel, will oversee the probe.
“While the Board has no reason to believe that either national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised, the Board’s inquiry will examine all available information,” the board said.
Jensen Huang said he supports the investigation and “will cooperate fully.”
Trump defends Jensen Huang
Later on Sunday, Trump defended the Nvidia CEO, calling him an “honorable guy.”
“I think he probably has an excuse for it. You have to hear it,” Trump told reporters.
The president also said he thinks Jensen Huang should remain Nvidia’s CEO.
“He’s done an amazing job for our country,” Trump said.
Nvidia CEO off tech event lineup
In the wake of the scandal, Jensen Huang is no longer set to attend an Anthropic-hosted private CEO forum Monday in Montecito, California.
He was set to be interviewed by an Anthropic executive, a person familiar with the event told Business Insider. Jensen Huang is no longer expected to attend, a second person familiar with the matter said.
Jensen Huang is also no longer speaking at the ElevenLabs Summit in NYC later this week, a spokesperson for the AI voice technology startup confirmed to Business Insider. He was scheduled for a fireside chat with ElevenLabs CEO Mati Staniszewski.
China denies allegations
The Chinese government has pushed back against claims that Alice Huang is a spy.
“The ‘Chinese spy’ allegation is purely unsubstantiated and directed at smearing China,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters during a news conference on Monday.
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