The deepening scandal drove Nvidia’s board of directors over the edge.
For a few weeks, we’ve known that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang had been cheating on his wife with a suspected Chinese spy. Yesterday, it emerged that that he had a second affair with Nvidia healthcare executive Kimberly Powell.
That was apparently the final straw. On Thursday morning, Nvidia officially announced that the disgraced billionaire had resigned as “President, Chief Executive Officer, and a member of the Board, effective immediately,” bookending a turbulent couple of weeks of startling revelations.
The chipmaker’s share price has been on a wild ride this morning, plummeting over 14 percent when trading opened on Thursday before nosing back up to a 7 percent loss, reflecting a key tension in the scandal: while Huang is practically synonymous with Nvidia’s image, the company’s fundamentals as the purveyor of shovels for the AI gold rush are still strong.
The major question is whether Huang’s exit could jeopardize that reality. It’s certainly already disturbed the AI industry’s relentless upward trajectory over the past few years: the company’s stock is now down over 14 percent in 2026, having wiped out well over $1 trillion in market value. The last time Nvidia was trading at this price was in early July 2025.
The scandal also touches on other pain points, from president Donald Trump personally keeping his infidelity a secret, to the Department of Commerce fighting an investigation into the company where Huang’s Chinese paramour is an executive.
It greatly undermines the Trump administration and Republican party’s conventionally hardline stance on China. And Democrats, who are taking control of Congress in less than two months, are ready to hold Huang’s feet to the fire, regardless of his employment status.
Put simply, it’s a corporate and geopolitical fracas of epic proportions that could have lasting effects, not just on Nvidia, but the AI industry — and therefore the entire US economy — as a whole.
Investors are now being forced to estimate the extent of the fallout. Considering shares had already rebounded significantly in the opening minutes of trading, many are viewing the current moment as a great deal. Nvidia is easily the biggest player in the game, producing powerful AI chips being used across much of the globe. Huang’s departure may or may not change that.
Others are also clearly satisfied by Nvidia’s pick for interim CEO Colette Kress, who joined the company in 2013 and served as CFO.
“She’s extremely strong-willed, professional, and whip smart,” an unnamed former Nvidia executive told Wired. “She obviously has a keen sense for how Jensen thinks.”
Some analysts believe Nvidia will survive largely unscathed.
“The stock will clearly be under pressure with this fluid news but the reality is its a dark day for Nvidia, but the company will navigate this turmoil and get through to the other side and remain a core foundational piece of the AI Revolution,” tech bull Dan Ives said in a note published late Wednesday night, before Nvidia announced Huang’s resignation.
“Time to look forward for Nvidia without Jensen,” Ives followed up in a tweet on Thursday. “Dark chapter for Jensen and Nvidia.”
More on Huang: “Diva Down:” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Resigns
The post It’s a Really, Really Bad Day for Nvidia appeared first on Futurism.
