Nvidia’s board has launched an independent investigation into reports that its chief executive, Jensen Huang, was the target of a foreign intelligence effort, after the CEO admitted to an extramarital affair with a businesswoman US officials suspect of gathering information for Beijing.
The board announced the inquiry on Sunday, 8 November, saying it had no reason to believe that national security or Nvidia secrets had been compromised, but that the investigation would examine all available information. A committee of independent directors, assisted by outside counsel, will oversee the review.
Huang, 63, apologised to Nvidia employees in a message on Sunday, saying he had been unfaithful to his wife. “I was unfaithful to my wife,” he wrote. “My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did.”
The woman at the centre of the reports has been identified by The New York Times as Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, a Chinese citizen and former executive of Megaspeed International, a Singapore-based data centre company. US officials concluded last year that she was sharing information with the Chinese government while working with Nvidia to build data centres in Asia, The Wall Street Journal has reported.
The New York Times first reported in October 2025 that Alice Huang and Jensen Huang had been seen socialising together, and on 29 October reported that US intelligence officials were concerned she was acting on behalf of Chinese intelligence and had a close relationship with the Nvidia chief. The newspaper also reported that Secretary of State Marco Rubio oversaw the drafting of a classified memo in the spring warning senior Trump administration officials about the relationship.
The controversy has drawn in lawmakers. Republican Senator Kevin Cramer has called on Huang to resign, saying the reported relationship could expose the chipmaker to extortion, while Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has called on Congress to pass restrictions on chip sales to China. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has called for the annual defence bill to include such restrictions.
Nvidia has moved to put a heavyweight lawyer in charge of the probe. The Information reported on 10 November that the board had retained Wachtell Lipton partner Joon Kim, a former acting US Attorney for the Southern District of New York whose practice includes internal investigations and white-collar defence, to lead the investigation.
The same day, The Information reported that Huang’s affair had facilitated the shipment of at least $7.5 billion worth of the company’s chips to Chinese firms. Nvidia has previously said Jensen Huang’s interactions with Alice Huang were “not unusual or unexpected” given their business ties.
A proposed class action was filed on 9 November accusing Nvidia and Huang of defrauding shareholders by concealing his ties with a suspected Chinese spy. President Donald Trump has said the FBI is also looking into the affair.
China has dismissed the espionage allegations. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Monday that the narrative about so-called Chinese spies was “entirely based on groundless speculation” and “nothing more than slander and smearing”.
Huang will remain as chief executive while the investigation continues. The board said it prioritises US national and economic security, and a company spokesman said the news would not slow Nvidia down, adding that Huang was committed to continuing to lead the company without interruption. Nvidia is valued at around $4.5 trillion, making it one of the world’s biggest companies.
