Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigns amid affair and China chip smuggling probes

At a glance

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigned after reports of an affair with a subordinate. The writer thinks the departure may be tied to suspected smuggling of chips to China.

Key points

1. 1

   Two reports came out on Wednesday: one alleged an affair with Kimberly Powell, a subordinate, and another said the board was considering his removal.

2. 2

   Nvidia announced the next morning that Huang had resigned.

3. 3

   Megaspeed, a Southeast Asian company and Nvidia's largest buyer in the region, had a Singapore office that was reportedly almost empty.

4. 4

   Short seller Culper Research argued that over 20% of Nvidia's revenue still came from China, while Nvidia said its China market share was zero.

Why it matters

The leader of the company that makes most AI chips has changed, and suspected chip deals that got around China export rules could affect the whole AI industry.