Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Falls for the Oldest Trick in the Book

“For her – all seven deadly sins!” This line appears in the classic 1927 silent sci-fi film Metropolis. The declaration occurs when a machine disguised as a pretty woman performs a seductive dance, hypnotizing all the men at a nightclub.

Some men will fall prey to money; others, to power. For Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, it was the age-old tale of lust. He fell for a coquettish high-level businesswoman, who just might have been a Chinese spy. But while a man’s late midlife crisis likely played a role, his poor decision-making could threaten a $4 trillion empire – and the US economy.

Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the Classic Blunder

In a weekend letter to staff, Huang admitted to being unfaithful to his wife and hurting his family. But it was not a one-and-done summer fling with the local barista. Instead, according to multiple reports, he had an affair with Alice Huang, a former executive at a Singapore-based data center company, who US intelligence agencies suspect spied for the Chinese government.

The company’s board announced it was launching an investigation to determine whether any information had been leaked to Beijing. Congress also asked Huang to attend a closed-door briefing to discuss potential leaks to the Chinese Communist Party.

Then The New York Times dropped a report on Wednesday indicating there was a second affair. This time, he had an intimate relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's vice president of health care. A day later, Reuters reported that Huang had a third affair with a second Nvidia employee.

The chipmaker titan announced that Huang had resigned as president, CEO, and board member. In his place, the company installed CFO Colette Kress as interim leader until the board finds a suitable permanent replacement. Prediction markets suggest it will be longtime executive Ian Buck. President Donald Trump touted former Apple CEO Tim Cook. Some suggest AMD’s Lisa Su will take the reins.

Whoever is selected, the future of Nvidia is in doubt. Some jumped off what they viewed as a sinking ship. The stock fell as much as 13% before paring back its losses and ending the Nov. 12 trading session down around 4%. In the near term, the company will be all right, as many deals and decisions for 2027 and 2028 are already locked in. But after that, Nvidia will no longer have Huang’s vision, which could lead to a series of unfortunate events.

A Threat to the AI Boom?

It is safe to say that Jensen Huang was the global AI king. He possessed the key skill of being a calm voice in an ocean of uncertainty and chaos. Stocks tanking? Bubble popping? Companies can’t raise cash? Huang became the soft-spoken guiding spirit who soothed markets and put everyone’s minds at ease.

Wearing a leather jacket, Huang became the face of artificial intelligence. Without him in the public eye every day, the AI boom could be threatened. Or, at the very least, Nvidia may lose market share to competitors like Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Broadcom, Micron Technology, Intel, and other chipmakers.

At the same time, Nvidia has become more than just one man. The company has the infrastructure, the deep bench of talent, and client relationships to navigate prosperity and turmoil. Wall Street analysts were spooked enough to downgrade their price targets. But armchair traders apparently bought the dip.

Women

French philosopher Albert Camus wrote: “Women are all we know of paradise on this earth.” Perhaps that is why men are willing to risk everything for the pleasure of a woman’s company, touch, and kindness. Jensen Huang is not a moron. He is in his 60s, worth more than $100 billion, and may be the world’s most recognizable CEO. He was a rock star during his trip to China. And yet his romances were likely not because of his white hair or his $7,000 Tom Ford leather jackets.

Who knows exactly what motivated these women? For Jensen Huang, perhaps it was a case of being in his winter years and desiring the sweet bird of youth. For much of his life, he was stuck behind a computer, growing a company from a napkin at Denny’s to one of the world’s richest entities. Now, he wants to live!

But these desires could sink a major company, harm brokerage accounts, threaten the global economy, and pose a national security risk.