Some Nvidia staff urge board to reinstate Jensen Huang after resignation, Wired reports
In brief
- Internal Nvidia post drew 1,600-plus comments, several urging the board to reinstate Huang, Wired reported.
- Huang resigned Thursday as president, CEO and board member, ending a 33-year tenure.
- CFO Colette Kress is interim CEO; former Synopsys CEO Harvey Jones became board chair.
- Nvidia, Jones and the engineer behind the post didn't comment or respond to Wired.
A suggestion box post with 1,600 comments
A longtime engineer submitted an internal "suggestion box" post before Huang's resignation, urging the board to take employee sentiment into account before acting, Wired reported. It's since drawn more than 1,600 comments, and several of them (posted anonymously) asked the board to find a way to reinstate Huang. That's some commenters, not a poll of the workforce.
The post also asked the board to share its investigation findings with staff and to formally seek their views on Huang continuing as CEO. One employee sent a companywide email demanding transparency about his exit.
"If you believe in the mission, bring back THE boss," one anonymous commenter wrote.
About two dozen Nvidia employees posted supportive messages on LinkedIn after he left, and Wired said it found no employee posts backing his departure. The engineer declined to comment. Nvidia and Jones didn't immediately respond to Wired.
New leadership, no stated reason
CFO Colette Kress is serving as interim CEO, while Harvey Jones (a former Synopsys CEO) became the board's first chair. Nvidia didn't give a reason for the resignation. Huang told staff on Sunday that he'd been "unfaithful" to his wife, without naming anyone, and he hasn't commented on the reports since that email, according to Wired.
Allegations, not findings
The New York Times reported in October that surveillance of Alice Huang (also known as Huang Le) indicated she'd developed a close relationship with the Nvidia CEO. Per the Times, U.S. officials concluded she was a Chinese intelligence asset; the Financial Times reported a U.S. memo said the two had been romantically involved. China has denied she's a spy. Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Justice Department hadn't concluded whether she was one and that the FBI was investigating, according to Reuters.
Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs said Alice Huang, CEO and chair of Nvidia customer Megaspeed, was investigated by police over possible false declarations tied to server purchases, not espionage. She received a stern warning, left Singapore in February and was barred from returning. Bloomberg, citing one person familiar with the matter, reported she's living in Beijing with the knowledge of security officials.
The Times also reported a relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's vice president of health care, who reported directly to Huang (Powell hasn't commented). Reuters, citing two people familiar with the matter, reported an intimate relationship with a second, unnamed employee.
Congressional committees have asked Huang to sit for a closed-door interview on December 1.
