Who Could Succeed Jensen Huang at Nvidia? Names Emerge as Board Weighs Options

A difficult succession decision

Huang, 63, led Nvidia from its founding more than three decades ago. His departure followed reports about his relationship with a woman suspected of being a Chinese spy.

Patrick Magee, a contributing writer for the Free Press, told CBS News he was unsure anyone at Nvidia had Huang’s scope of authority. Analyst Cody Acree said naming a successor quickly could be a mistake.

Wall Street analysts consider finance chief Colette Kress a capable interim CEO, but do not expect her to become the permanent replacement. Prediction markets nevertheless assign her a chance of roughly one in five.

Names from outside Nvidia

President Trump also publicly endorsed Cook, writing that he was the person to take Huang’s place. Another Apple executive mentioned as a contender is chief hardware officer Johny Srouji. Magee said Srouji had been floated for the job, but cautioned that a leader of his caliber could not necessarily be brought in within a day or two.

Internal and industry contenders

Analysts have also discussed Nvidia executive Ian Buck and Kress as possible internal successors. Bret Kenwell of eToro said the board would likely favor a technology leader focused on innovation and products. Acree said Buck made the most sense internally.

Rene Haas, Arm’s CEO, is another name under consideration. Acree pointed to Haas’s understanding of the chip industry and his earlier work at Nvidia, where he was vice president and general manager of computing products before joining Arm in 2013.

Another potential candidate, Nikesh Arora, has worked at Google, SoftBank Group and T-Mobile. He said last month that plans could not guarantee access to Nvidia chips before 2028.

Prediction markets diverge

Kalshi traders put Buck first, estimating a 35% chance he would become CEO. They gave Kress 22% and Haas 9%. Polymarket traders favored Cook, with nearly 50% expecting him to take over permanently. The platform also listed Buck at 32%, Kress at 24% and Haas at 9.2%. The differing forecasts show that traders have not settled on a clear successor while Nvidia’s board considers its options.