Nvidia’s stock fell about 5% Monday after the company announced it had opened an investigation into CEO Jensen Huang’s relationship with a woman who U.S. intelligence agencies say is a Chinese spy.
The investigation has the potential to disrupt the entire AI boom, fueled by billions of dollars in spending and investment, in part to buy Nvidia’s cutting-edge AI chips. The fall of Nvidia wiped out more than $240 billion in value.
The CEO, who also founded the company more than three decades ago, admitted in a memo to employees that he had been unfaithful to his wife. “To my colleagues at NVIDIA, including those I have worked with for decades, as well as our Board of Directors, partners, and shareholders around the world: you deserve better from me,” Huang’s email also said.
In recent days, the Financial Times and the New York Times reported that Huang was in a relationship with a Chinese businesswoman named Alice Huang. A person with knowledge of the matter told NBC News that U.S. intelligence agencies had determined that Alice Huang was a Chinese spy. The two Huangs are not related.
China called the spying allegations “slander.” The company where Alice Huang reportedly works, Megaspeed, did not respond to requests for comment.
Nvidia said in a statement on Sunday that independent administrators and lawyers would oversee the investigation. “The Board prioritizes the national and economic security of the United States, which is paramount to the interests of NVIDIA and its shareholders,” the company said.
An Nvidia spokesperson told NBC News that Huang is “committed to continuing to lead NVIDIA as CEO without interruption.”
Despite Nvidia’s prominence in the AI business, the news affected virtually no other stocks. The Nasdaq 100, which tracks the top technology stocks on the Nasdaq stock exchange, climbed 3.3%. The broader S&P 500 index rose 2.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 1,000 points. Stocks were also propelled higher by a sharp 5% drop in oil prices on Monday, following news of continued negotiations between the United States and Iran. Trump also told CNN on Sunday that it would be “highly unlikely” that he would resume major combat operations against Iran.
Nvidia’s competitors, such as AMD, Qualcomm, Taiwan Semi, and Intel, have all grown alongside the broader market. Nvidia was the biggest loser on the Dow and S&P 500.
Before Huang’s revelations, the tech industry was on its last legs, with each headline about AI-related companies sending stocks soaring or falling. Just last week, tech stocks surged after it became clear on election night that Democrats would win a majority in Congress. But shares plunged the next day. On Thursday, stocks suffered their worst one-day decline since Trump shook the global economy with his first wave of tariffs in April 2025.
Since there are few larger companies in the tech sector as a whole, investors and even market watchers who haven’t invested in Nvidia stock will be watching the investigation closely.
Many questions still remain unanswered. On Sunday, Nvidia’s board said it had “no reason to believe that national security or NVIDIA’s secrets have been compromised.” But he did not provide a timeline for how quickly the investigation would be conducted or any other details about Huang’s contact with Alice Huang.
The influence of Jensen Huang
Jensen Huang has become one of the key driving forces behind the global AI push while leading Nvidia to a market value of over $4 trillion. Huang has led Nvidia since its founding in 1993, so it would be a dramatic change if he left that role.
Huang is the largest individual stock holder, outside of investment funds, and he is not protected from removal if the board decides to do so. Its stake in Nvidia stock represents about 3.5% of its outstanding shares, but unlike other big tech companies like Meta, Nvidia only owns one class of stock.
Trump threw his support behind Huang on Sunday, likely reducing the chances he will be removed as CEO in the near term. “I just know he’s a good person, but you never know what happens.”
The president was asked if Huang should remain CEO of Nvidia, to which he replied: “I think so. Oh yeah, of course.”
With so many outstanding questions about the Huang scandal, few major analysts who cover Nvidia were speaking out Monday morning about what it could mean for the company’s future.
But those who did said it was a blemish on an otherwise excellent record that could trigger even more investigations.
“This is a dark moment for Jensen and will at a minimum trigger several congressional investigations and create overhang in the stock for a myriad of reasons,” wrote Dan Ives of Yorkville Ives. “There is clearly a risk that Jensen could be removed as CEO based on the board’s investigation, which would add risk to the stock because he is so important to Nvidia’s story and strategy globally.”
Chip analyst Stacy Rasgon of Bernstein Research summed up the severity of the revelations: “NVIDIA is no ordinary company and Jensen is no ordinary CEO; he IS NVIDIA.”
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