Jensen Huang steps down as NVIDIA CEO after 33 years

Jensen Huang's departure marks the end of a 33-year run during which NVIDIA grew from a gaming GPU maker into the central supplier of AI infrastructure. The announcement, made on November 12 with the board's acceptance dated November 11, puts CFO Colette Kress in the interim CEO role while the board searches for a permanent replacement. Harvey Jones becomes the board's first chair.

The transition comes at a sensitive moment: the board's independent directors had named Joon H. Kim and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct an investigation announced on November 8, adding a layer of governance scrutiny to the leadership change. The board has opened a search for a permanent CEO, and prediction-market odds discussed by Ian Cutress reflect traders' expectations about the outcome.

Questions also extend to NVIDIA's open-source commitments. Researchers raised concerns about support for Nemotron and the future of the Hub, though Clem Delangue and NVIDIA's Nader Khalil reiterated their support for open source. How the interim leadership handles these commitments—and the pending investigation—will shape how investors and partners view the transition.