The controversy surrounding Jensen Huang, the former CEO of American tech company Nvidia, is growing. News of his intimate relationship with another female employee has surfaced. With this, the number of extramarital affairs has increased to three. On the other hand, the US Parliament is going to question him about his closeness with a woman with alleged ties to Chinese intelligence agencies. Huang resigned on Thursday after 33 years with the company.
According to Reuters, Huang had an intimate relationship with another female employee. The woman’s identity has not been released. Thus, this is the third case that has come to light after the news of his relationship with two other women. The first lady is Alice Huang. He is a former executive of Singapore cloud company Megaspeed and a Chinese businessman. The other woman is Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of healthcare, who worked with Huang.
In a statement sent to company employees on November 8, Huang admitted to having an extramarital affair. He also apologized for breaking his wife’s trust. However, he did not reveal the name of any woman.
Also examined relations with China
Alice Huang’s case is a matter of concern for American officials. American intelligence officials suspect that he may have ties to Chinese intelligence agencies. China has rejected these allegations of espionage. Alice previously worked at Megaspeed. The company had access to Nvidia’s AI chips.
US officials suspect that Megaspeed helped smuggle banned AI chips to China. The US Justice Department is also investigating entities associated with Ellis. It is alleged that these organizations tried to send super micro products to China. Singapore has also investigated Megaspeed and Alice. The government there sought information from the FBI and the US Justice Department, but received only limited information.
What will Huang say to the US Parliament?
Three Republican subcommittees of the US Congress demanded an inquiry into Huang on November 4. They include House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, Special Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar, and Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford.
Huang initially agreed to testify Wednesday night before resigning. The investigation is expected to take place before Thanksgiving. This can be done in a closed room. The testimony will be under oath and will be recorded and videotaped. If Huang backs down, MPs can call him out. MPs also want to question other senior Nvidia executives.
The investigation will reveal how much access Chinese intelligence agencies had to American technology and company intelligence. Nvidia’s board has also launched an independent investigation into the matter. External lawyers are being taken for this.
Huang became a co-founder of Nvidia in 1993. He had 3.61% stake in the company. Following his departure, CFO Colette Kress will take over as interim CEO. The company’s board is looking for both internal and external candidates for the permanent CEO. Ian Buck, a longtime engineer with the company, is also among the possible candidates. Former Synopsis CEO Harvey Jones has been named the new chairman of the board.
