Resigns amid fallout: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang faces Congress over reported affair with woman alleged to be spy

Congress seeks Huang’s testimony

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast said Huang agreed to testify before Congress this month. Mast told MS NOW the testimony would likely be a recorded, under-oath interview involving several committees, but did not say when it would occur or whether it would be public.

Mast said Nvidia was important to the United States and that Huang had serious questions to answer. Sen. Chuck Schumer also called for answers from Huang and the company about potential national security risks, and said the administration must account for its response to the reports.

Leadership transition at Nvidia

Huang resigned as CEO and stepped down from Nvidia’s board, effective immediately, the board announced. Colette Kress, the company’s chief financial officer and executive vice president, will serve as CEO temporarily while directors consider internal and outside candidates.

Nvidia shares fell 13% when markets opened Thursday, then recovered some losses by midafternoon. President Donald Trump praised Huang’s work after the resignation and suggested former Apple CEO Tim Cook as a possible replacement.

Reports of relationships and apology

On Sunday, Huang apologized to his family in a statement, saying he had been unfaithful to his wife and that his actions hurt her and their children. He did not identify the person involved.

Questions over intelligence handling

The New York Times reported in October that Trump had been briefed a year earlier on electronic surveillance concerning a woman known as Alice Huang, whom U.S. intelligence reportedly believed was a Chinese government spy. The Times said Trump chose not to act on the information at the time.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly oversaw an intelligence memo last spring warning Trump and senior Cabinet officials about the assessment. Trump denied seeing the memo and said he did not know of the national security concerns when he invited Huang on a trip to China in May. A White House spokesperson referred MS NOW to Trump’s remarks and said the sources lacked knowledge.

Lawmakers are also expected to examine what Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick knew after reports that a classified memo warned him about the alleged relationship. The Commerce Department oversees the agency responsible for approving exports of advanced chips, and Lutnick has faced scrutiny over Nvidia chip sales to China.