For the first time in a long time, Nvidia’s investors may be feeling a little cold about their investment’s performance.
Last week, the famed chipmaker and many of its peers in the wider AI and technology industry suffered an estimated $2.5 trillion rout as investors questioned the hurdles facing the sector. The issue is political: The midterms saw Democrats win the Senate, the House, and many statehouses, prompting the question of whether regulation will become more complex under a divided government.
But adding to Nvidia investors’ concerns is the admission of its CEO, Jensen Huang, that he had an affair with an alleged Chinese spy.
Huang’s net worth, tied to the computer processor and AI company he co-founded, stood at just over $171 billion early last week. It dropped to $150.9 billion by Thursday, and briefly rebounded to $154.9 billion by Friday—the latest data point on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.
The trajectory follows the path of Nvidia’s share price, now down 18.6% in the past month.
But even as signs of a small reversal bloomed Friday, the weekend brought another blow. “I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry,” Huang said in a statement shared overnight.
“To my colleagues at NVIDIA … you deserve better from me. Leading NVIDIA is the privilege of my life. My responsibility is to serve you and be worthy of your trust. I have fallen short of that responsibility,” he added, saying he would work to “earn back” the confidence of the board, partners and company shareholders.
The woman he had an affair with has been identified in a series of reports as a suspected Chinese spy. Nvidia’s board of directors confirmed in an accompanying statement overnight that it had launched an independent investigation “in light of recent reporting that founder and CEO Jensen Huang has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort.”
The Chinese government has denied involvement in the alleged spy plot involving Huang, calling the debacle “nothing but smears.”
The board added that while it has no reason to believe sensitive national security or NVIDIA “secrets” were compromised, it will “examine all available information.”
Analysts are digesting the news this morning ahead of markets opening in New York. Equities in Asia rallied this morning, noted Deutsche Bank’s Jim Reid, “although concerns surrounding an internal investigation involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang are capping gains.”
“The company is down around -3.5% on platforms that provide weekend prices,” he added.
Trump backing
The importance of Nvidia among the companies at the forefront of AI development cannot be overstated. It is the premier supplier of chips to AI companies and one of the largest investors and guarantors of companies in the AI supply chain—to the tune of hundreds of billions.
Yet President Trump was unruffled when asked about one of the country’s most famous CEOs being potentially implicated in a national security threat.
“I have not spoken to [Huang] about it,” Trump told reporters last night. “I just know he’s a fine person, but you never know what is going on.”
Betting on the prediction market Kalshi had the odds of Huang leaving the company before July 27 at 25%. Professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, senior associate dean for leadership studies at the Yale School of Management, put the odds of his resignation at 50-50. Huang owns the largest single stake in Nvidia, and his children are among his employees. If he were to leave, there is no obvious successor.
Nvidia’s board said it has “confidence in Jensen and his leadership team.”
President Trump was also confident Huang would continue to lead the company, saying: “He’s done an amazing job for our country.”