Nvidia CEO and co-founder Jensen Huang has resigned effective immediately, ending his 33-year leadership of the world’s dominant AI chipmaker and sending shockwaves through Wall Street and the global artificial intelligence industry.

Nvidia confirmed the departure Thursday, November 12, announcing that Huang had stepped down as president, chief executive officer, and board member. The company appointed longtime Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as interim CEO while its board begins searching for a permanent replacement.

“NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) Board of Directors announced today that Jensen Huang has resigned as President, Chief Executive Officer, and a member of the Board, effective immediately,” Nvidia said in a statement.

The announcement marks an extraordinary turning point for a company that has become the backbone of the global AI boom. Huang, who co-founded Nvidia in 1993, transformed the chipmaker from a graphics processor manufacturer into a technology giant worth approximately $4 trillion.

Investors reacted sharply. Nvidia shares plunged more than 10% in premarket trading, according to Reuters, as uncertainty over the company’s leadership weighed on broader technology stocks.

The sudden resignation follows days of mounting scrutiny surrounding Huang’s personal conduct and reports that he may have been targeted by a foreign intelligence operation.

On November 8, Nvidia’s board announced an independent investigation after reports surfaced about Huang’s relationship with a businesswoman suspected by U.S. authorities of having ties to Chinese intelligence. The board said it had no reason to believe Nvidia’s proprietary information or U.S. national security had been compromised.

The controversy intensified after reports emerged of a separate relationship involving a senior Nvidia executive who reported to Huang.

Although the developments preceded his departure, Nvidia’s official announcement did not explicitly attribute the resignation to either controversy.

Nvidia faces its biggest leadership test as the AI boom enters a critical phase

Nvidia’s board has appointed Harvey C. Jones, a longtime technology executive and former Synopsys CEO, as its first chairman. Jones will oversee the leadership transition as the company evaluates internal and external candidates for the permanent CEO position.

Kress, who joined Nvidia in September 2013, will continue serving as chief financial officer while taking on interim leadership responsibilities. Her experience overseeing Nvidia’s finances during its extraordinary expansion makes her a familiar figure to investors.

In its announcement, Nvidia’s board expressed confidence that operations, customer commitments, and product development would continue without interruption.

But replacing Huang presents a challenge that extends well beyond the executive suite.

For more than three decades, Huang shaped Nvidia’s engineering culture, product strategy, and relationships with the world’s largest technology companies. His leadership helped establish Nvidia GPUs as the preferred hardware for training and running advanced AI models.

Companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Meta depend on Nvidia’s computing ecosystem to support their AI infrastructure investments.

The implications extend to startups as well. AI companies building products around Nvidia’s chips and software depend on a predictable supply of computing capacity, consistent product roadmaps, and continued investment in the broader AI ecosystem.

Huang also played a central role in Nvidia’s relationships with governments, particularly Washington, where restrictions on advanced chip exports to China have become a significant geopolitical issue.

His departure raises questions about whether his successor will maintain the same approach to international markets, strategic investments, and AI infrastructure expansion.

The timing adds another complication.

Nvidia is scheduled to report its third-quarter fiscal 2027 financial results on November 17, giving investors an early opportunity to assess the company’s outlook under its new leadership.

For Nvidia, the immediate priority is maintaining confidence among customers, developers, suppliers, and shareholders while preparing for its first leadership transition since its founding.

For the broader technology industry, Huang’s departure reminds us that even the companies driving the AI revolution face risks advanced technology alone cannot solve.

Nvidia helped define the AI era under Jensen Huang. The question now is whether it can maintain that dominance without the leader who built it.

Below is the full news release from the Nvidia board.

NVIDIA Announces CEO Transition