In the early hours of Sunday, November 8, employees at Nvidia received an email from the man responsible for founding the company. This email did not relate to chips.
CEO of Nvidia, Jensen Huang, in a note to his company acknowledged that he had been having an affair with a suspected Chinese spy, and that an independent review was being conducted by the board.
"I have been unfaithful to my wife," Huang wrote.
His apology was sincere and direct. “I take full responsibility,” Huang stated, saying he had not lived up to his obligations to his employees, the board, and the shareholders.
But there was more – he also answered the issues of national security. An independent inquiry is under way into what the press reported about his behavior, he said, and he would work to ensure the process went smoothly. “I love our country and our company,” he stated, adding that he is devoted to protecting both Nvidia and America’s national security.
He asked for privacy regarding his family. “My family has no responsibility for my actions,” he stated.
The memo followed several reports. The investigation followed a report from the New York Times in October which indicated that Huang was close to a businesswoman in China, who leaked information to Beijing.
The businesswoman is none other than Alice Huang, and there is no kinship relationship between her and Huang. It is according to reports from the Financial Times and New York Times that Alice Huang is the person mentioned in a classified document issued by the U.S government as being a person that could have been recruited by the Chinese Ministry of State Security. She works for Megaspeed, which deals with Nvidia.
These are reports from US officials and the media. None of the reports reviewed contained a statement from Alice Huang, nor did Huang refer to anyone in his memo.
He had also spoken about her previously. As reported in Bloomberg News in October, "My dealings with her were related to Megaspeed, and it was all completely normal and not unusual." His revelation in the past weekend has taken it beyond that statement.
The Nvidia board acted swiftly. There will be an independent committee to investigate this matter, along with the help of external legal representation.
In its press release, the issue was characterized in a certain light. The board claims that it initiated the investigation due to reporting that "Huang has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort," and it has full confidence in Huang and his leadership team.
The head of public policy communications of Nvidia says that Huang is determined to serve as CEO uninterrupted.
Congress is already on board. On a November 4 letter, the Republican chairmen of three House committees requested Huang to attend an off-the-record briefing on November 18 regarding his dealings with Alice Huang and the measures taken by Nvidia to guard against any foreign espionage.
According to the report published in The New York Times on Friday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed top Trump administration officials about Huang’s relationship with Alice Huang.
It was not indicated in the news reports analyzed here if Huang attended the briefing. No official investigation by any governmental department was also noted.
Huang is married to Lori Huang, and together they have two kids. It was found in one report that both of their children Madison and Spencer are employed at Nvidia, while Madison works in technical marketing and physical AI and Spencer in robotics products.
It is the reason why the apology was intended to their family and colleagues. The reports examined did not provide any involvement of their children in the investigation.
NVIDIA is one of the most valued corporations in the world and the biggest manufacturer of AI chips. According to The Times, "Alice Huang was hired to get information about getting the advanced chips of Nvidia available in China despite restrictions."
This is the reason why this case is not only a personal one. Advanced chip export regulations is an important aspect of the US-Chinese relationship and any hint that the CEO's decision-making could have been affected by something would be of concern to the regulator, investors, and politicians.
No conclusions have been drawn yet. The investigation of the board is supposed to establish if any corporate secrets and/or national security concerns were violated.
A number of things will be significant. First, what the board committee discovers and how much time it takes. Secondly, whether Huang addresses Congress on November 18. Lastly, how investors respond after the opening of the market because the report released on Sunday had no trading information.
