Nvidia’s Huang Resigns as CEO, Board Names Kress Interim Chief

The company’s statement, published Thursday, said Kress will keep her role as executive vice president and chief financial officer while she serves as interim chief until a permanent successor is named. The board said it is starting a search and will consider internal and external candidates. In a Form 8-K filed Thursday, Nvidia said the board accepted Huang’s resignation on Nov. 11.

Huang co-founded Nvidia in 1993 and had been its only chief executive. The statement did not give a reason for his resignation. The announcement followed a tumultuous week in which Huang apologized to staff for being “unfaithful” to his wife, the board opened an independent investigation into reports that he had been the target of a foreign intelligence effort, and The Wall Street Journal reported that directors were preparing to oust him after a second alleged affair.

Kress Keeps Her Finance Role

Kress has been Nvidia’s finance chief since she joined the company in September 2013. Before that, she spent nearly 25 years in finance roles at technology companies including Cisco and Microsoft, Nvidia said.

Harvey Jones, newly named chair of the board, said Kress “has helped lead NVIDIA through a period of extraordinary growth and has a deep understanding of our business, customers, operations and financial position.” The board, he said, has “full confidence in Colette and the leadership team” and expects operations, customer commitments and the product roadmap “to continue without interruption.”

Kress said Nvidia’s strength “has always come from its people,” and that she is “committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years.”

Jones Becomes the First Board Chair

The board appointed Harvey C. Jones as its first-ever chair. Jones, who has served on the board since 1993, is a longtime technology executive and investor who previously served as chief executive and executive chairman of Synopsys, Nvidia said. The company thanked Huang for “immeasurable contributions to the company and the industry.”

Shares Fall in Premarket Trading

Nvidia shares were down about 10.5% in premarket trading Thursday, at about $155.50, compared with Wednesday’s close of $173.73, according to Yahoo Finance data. The stock had already been under pressure earlier in the week after the board inquiry became public.

Nvidia said it will report fiscal third-quarter results on Tuesday, Nov. 17, as previously scheduled, followed by its earnings call at 2 p.m. PT.