1 day ago
65
Speculation over what Nvidia's future could look like without its high-profile chief executive ramped up on Wednesday.
The chipmaker's stock fell 8% in after-hours trading Wednesday after The Wall Street Journal reported that its board was preparing to remove CEO Jensen Huang.
The New York Times also reported Wednesday that Huang had an affair with an Nvidia executive who reported to him, citing five people who worked at the company.
The report came days after Huang said in a memo to employees that he had an extramarital affair, and after Nvidia's board launched an investigation into whether Huang had been targeted by a foreign intelligence operation. The New York Times previously reported US officials believed Huang had grown close to a tech executive, Alice Huang, who had been recruited to gather information for the Chinese government.
As the chip giant's succession plans remain unknown, here is what smart people in business and tech are saying about Huang's potential exit from Nvidia.
Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management
Ross Gerber said Huang's departure would be a disappointment for Nvidia shareholders but said the company could move forward without him.
"Looks like Jensen is done. What a disappointment. Sad day for Nvidia shareholders and looks like another tough day for the stock. Never would have guessed he'd go down this way," Gerber wrote in one of several posts on X on Wednesday.
"Jensen will be replaced and Nvidia is still Nvidia. That's business. He must go and Nvidia needs to focus on selling chips!" Gerber added.
Eric Wallerstein, chief macro strategist at Clocktower Group
Eric Wallerstein wrote on X on Wednesday that Huang's likely ousting could shake investor confidence in the broader AI trade, given Nvidia's role in financing the industry.
"Jensen has helped foster a complex web of circular financing relationships, and ultimately backstopped the AI trade, with Nvidia's balance sheet," Wallerstein said.
"Removing that Put, or even placing uncertainty on its availability, will cause investors to increase the risk premium on AI-related assets," Wallerstein added
Ed Zitron, CEO of EZ Primary Research
Ed Zitron said in a post on X that he questions what else Nvidia might be withholding from investors, pointing to the company's past regulatory troubles.
"Oh so NVIDIA knew about this affair already, huh? What else is this company not telling us?" Zitron wrote on Wednesday.
Zitron also cited two previous SEC cases involving Nvidia, one in 2002 over accounting practices and one in 2022 over disclosures related to cryptocurrency mining and gaming revenue.
Jason Calacanis, co-host and executive producer of the All-In Podcast
Jason Calacanis said the company shouldn't be so quick to remove Huang.
"A much better solution for NVIDIA's board, shareholders, customers and employees (and America) would be to (a) finish their investigation and (b) make @JensenHuang the chairman if it comes to that," Calacanis wrote on X on Wednesday.
"China doesn't need NVIDIA's chips. America needs NVIDIA to win. Act accordingly," Calacanis added, alongside a screenshot of his new Nvidia share purchases.
Keith Urbahn, president of Javelin
Keith Urbahn, president of Javelin, a literary and creative agency that has repped prominent figures like James Comey and Tucker Carlson, said Wednesday in an X post that the situation was "a generational case study in how not to manage a crisis."
He outlined several lessons to take away from the ordeal, including: "Never let a CEO's personal crisis take precedence over the interests of the company and its shareholders."
"The board must speak with its own voice. It cannot outsource its institutional credibility to the CEO," he added.
Byrne Hobart, venture capitalist and founder of The Diff
Byrne Hobart, general partner at Anomaly Fund and founder of The Diff, a finance and tech newsletter, suggested ousting Huang could lead to new competition for Nvidia.
"On one hand, boards have to do what they have to do. On the other hand, he's a guy who's worth $150bn, knows everyone in hardware, named his company after the Latin word for "spite," and he lives in a state where you can't enforce noncompetes," he wrote in a post on X.
Anthony Pompliano, crypto investor and entrepreneur
Anthony Pompliano, a crypto investor and entrepreneur, wrote on X: "Jensen's yet-to-be-launched Nvidia competitor is going to do numbers in the seed round."
Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management
Gene Munster, a tech analyst and managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, said in an X post that Nvidia will go on, with or without its famous CEO.
"Remember: AI infrastructure customers will act in their best interest," he said. "That means they'll keep buying just as many $NVDA chips with or without Jensen."
He also said he guesses the stock will open on Thursday at $150, or about 20% lower than the close at the end of last week, but that he expects it to "quickly rally back."
Read next
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know
Katherine Li is a reporter on Business Insider's West Coast business news team. She covers career, the future of work, and how AI is changing hiring practices and workplace trends.Previously, she was a newsroom fellow who wrote international breaking news and produced newsletters for Semafor. Before that, she wrote about climate policies for The Lever, covered the AAPI community for the SF Chronicle as a freelancer, and wrote about the 2019 Hong Kong protests as an intern for The New York Times.She is an alumna of the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley and a graduate of the international journalism program at Hong Kong Baptist University with minors in French and English literature. Email Katherine at [email protected] and follow her on Bluesky @katherineli.bsky.social.
Kelsey Vlamis is a senior reporter for Business Insider, where she covers business and tech news. She also writes business stories about travel, luxury, and culture. Previously, she covered the environment, outdoors, and indigenous issues.Her feature story "Disaster at 18,200 feet" received awards from the New York Press Club and the North American Travel Journalists Association, as well as honorable mention from the Society of American Travel Writers. She has also received an American Journalism Online Award for her coverage on missing and murdered Indigenous people in Wyoming.She's appeared on CBS, NPR, NBC, and other outlets to discuss her reporting. She previously worked on the world news desk at the BBC in London and received a master's in journalism from Northwestern University.She can be reached by email at [email protected] or via the encrypted-messaging app Signal at kelseyv.21.
