Jensen Huang has resigned as President, Chief Executive Officer and a member of Nvidia’s Board of Directors, effective immediately, the company announced on November 12, 2026 in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO.
It marks the end of an era for the world’s leading maker of artificial intelligence chips. Co-founder Jensen Huang led Nvidia for 33 years and turned it into one of the most valuable companies on the planet on the back of the generative AI boom.
Colette Kress takes the helm on an interim basis
According to the official release, Colette Kress, Executive Vice President and CFO, becomes interim Chief Executive while keeping her finance role, “until a permanent successor has been named.” Kress joined Nvidia in 2013 after some 25 years at Cisco and Microsoft. She said she is “committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years.”
The Board also appointed Harvey C. Jones to the newly created post of Chair. “The Board has full confidence in Colette and the leadership team,” he said. The Board is initiating a search for a permanent CEO and will consider internal and external candidates.
A resignation amid revelations
Nvidia’s filing gives no reason for the departure. According to Fortune, it follows Huang’s admission of an extramarital affair with a woman U.S. intelligence officials deemed to be a Chinese spy. The Board had earlier opened an investigation into reports that he had been targeted by a foreign intelligence effort, while saying it had “no reason to believe that either national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised,” Fortune reports.
Al Jazeera reports that investigations were triggered by the FBI, the U.S. Congress and Nvidia itself, that the Board hired a law firm, and that the company faces a shareholder class action. Nvidia’s release does not address these points. Huang has not commented publicly on his resignation.
Shares under pressure
Nvidia stock fell at the open — initially by more than 6% according to Fortune, and by roughly 10% in early trading according to Al Jazeera, which said the company’s market value slipped below $4 trillion for the first time since 2025. Huang owns about 3.6% of the company.
Next key date: Nvidia is keeping its third-quarter fiscal 2027 results on Tuesday, November 17, with an analyst call at 2 p.m. Pacific time. Investors and customers will watch closely for any signal on strategy and governance at a company that has become central to the global AI race.
Sources: Nvidia release filed with the SEC (November 12, 2026); Fortune; Al Jazeera.