Scott Bessent says Nvidia should look outside the company for a new CEO: ‘They needed a dramatic shake-up'
Bessent calls for outside candidates
In an interview on Fox’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Nvidia’s board should focus on CEO candidates from beyond the company. He said, “They need a dramatic shake-up.” Bessent also said Nvidia’s board should respond within 10 days to questions about the company’s compliance with export regulations. He praised Nvidia and Jensen Huang’s innovation, while saying that did not remove the company’s compliance duties.
Huang’s departure and investigation
Huang resigned last week after Nvidia’s board opened an investigation into whether he had been the target of a foreign intelligence effort. On the same day, he acknowledged an extramarital affair in a memo to staff.
Nvidia weighs its CEO options
Some analysts and investors have named their preferred choices. Others hope the board will reinstate Huang while an internal investigation into his affair is completed.
Debate over espionage allegations
Some people in the tech industry believe allegations that Alice Huang was a spy may have been deliberately exaggerated by US China hawks seeking to remove Huang. The former CEO had advocated supplying chips to China.
Key points
- Bessent urged Nvidia’s board to consider candidates from outside the company.
- He said the board should address export-compliance questions within 10 days.
- Nvidia says it will consider internal and external candidates; Colette Kress is interim CEO.
- The Justice Department has not reached a conclusion on the espionage claims.