Nvidia board investigation: Jensen Huang stays CEO while directors review the reports

On November 8, 2026, NVIDIA’s board said it is opening an independent investigation after reporting that founder and CEO Jensen Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. The same day, NVIDIA published an email in which Huang wrote that he was unfaithful to his wife, that he supports the review, and that he is fully committed to the company. NVIDIA told CNBC he is committed to continuing as CEO without interruption. The board said it has no reason to believe that national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised. This page was published and updated on November 9, 2026. The pages cited here were read that day.

What did Nvidia’s board announce on November 8?

NVIDIA’s board opened an independent investigation and said it has no reason to believe that national security or company secrets were compromised.

The statement, dated November 8, 2026, is six sentences. It says the board “is initiating an independent investigation in light of recent reporting that founder and CEO Jensen Huang has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort.” A committee of independent directors, “assisted by outside independent counsel,” will oversee it. The board says U.S. national and economic security comes first for NVIDIA and its shareholders. Then the limit on what it is claiming: “While the Board has no reason to believe that either national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised, the Board's inquiry will examine all available information.” Huang “fully supports the review and has committed to cooperating with it.” The board “has confidence in Jensen and his leadership team and will provide further updates as appropriate.”

The statement does not name another person, a company, or a news outlet. It does not say the inquiry has finished. It does not remove Huang as CEO.

CNBC, in an article published the same day, quoted a company statement that is not in the board text: “Today's news will not slow NVIDIA. Jensen is committed to continuing to lead NVIDIA as CEO without interruption.”

What did Jensen Huang write to employees?

Huang wrote that he was unfaithful to his wife, that he supports the investigation, and that he is fully committed to NVIDIA.

NVIDIA posted the email on its newsroom under A Message to Our Company, also dated November 8, 2026. The newsroom line above the text says Huang sent it to employees earlier that day. CNBC printed the same message, with a subject line “A message to our company” and the date Nov. 8, 2026.

The email says: “I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did.” It says he takes full responsibility and asks that his family be given privacy. It says leading NVIDIA is “the privilege of my life,” that he has fallen short, and that “I am fully committed to NVIDIA and will work to earn back your confidence.”

On the investigation, the email says: “Regarding the national security concerns raised in news reports, NVIDIA’s Board of Directors has initiated an independent investigation. I support the investigation and will cooperate fully.” It also says he is committed to protecting NVIDIA and to supporting America’s national security.

The published email names no other person. It does not describe a foreign government, a customer, or a transfer of information.

Who is Alice Huang in the public record?

A November 4 House letter calls Alice Huang, a Megaspeed executive, a publicly reported Chinese intelligence asset, and asks Jensen Huang about his interactions with her. His published email does not use her name.

The letter is a primary document. It is dated November 4, 2026, addressed to Jensen Huang at NVIDIA’s Santa Clara office, and signed by Brian J. Mast, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; John Moolenaar, chairman of the House Select Committee on the CCP; and Eric A. “Rick” Crawford, chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The PDF asks for a briefing on “NVIDIA’s security protocols against foreign adversary espionage and your interactions with a publicly reported People’s Republic of China (PRC) intelligence asset: Megaspeed executive Alice Huang.”

That phrase is the letter’s description of prior reporting. The letter is not a court finding, and the November 8 board statement does not use Alice Huang’s name.

Two news accounts, both read on November 9, fill in what those “recent reports” have said. They attribute the underlying claims to other publications and to a memo, not to a NVIDIA finding.

TechCrunch, posted November 7, 2026, says a memo circulated earlier this year claimed that Alice Huang was recruited by China’s Ministry of State Security to spy on Jensen Huang, “according to multiple media reports.” TechCrunch says The New York Times was the first to report on that memo, and that the Financial Times later reported the memo also claimed a romantic relationship between Jensen Huang and Alice Huang, an executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed. TechCrunch says an NVIDIA spokesperson told the Times that Jensen Huang’s interactions with Alice Huang were “not unusual,” and that the company does not share classified information with its customers. That spokesperson comment predates the November 8 email. The email is the later, on-the-record personal statement.

The Verge, November 6, 2026, summarizing the Times, says the Ministry of State Security enlisted her to gather information about American AI chips and “potentially influence the company to push for its most advanced chips to be made available to China.” The Verge says the Times described the relationship as “close,” and that the two Huangs are not related.

This page has not independently read the Times memo story. The claims above are what TechCrunch and The Verge attribute to that reporting and to the Financial Times. NVIDIA’s November 8 board text uses a narrower sentence: reporting that Huang “has been the target of a foreign intelligence effort.”

What has Congress asked Jensen Huang to do?

Three House chairs asked him to give a closed-door briefing on November 18, 2026, or to propose another session day by November 11.

The November 4 letter asks Huang to appear in room 2172 of the Rayburn House Office Building on November 18, 2026. It asks him to accept that date, or to offer another date that falls on a session day of the 119th Congress, by November 11, 2026. The November 5 press release from the House Foreign Affairs Committee repeats those two dates and the same description of Alice Huang.

The letter was already public before this weekend. It matters on November 9 because the deadline to accept November 18, or to propose another session day, is November 11, and because the board investigation announced on November 8 now sits beside that request. This page has no NVIDIA reply that accepts November 18 or offers another day.

What did President Trump say?

Axios reported that, on Sunday night, Trump told reporters he had not heard that Huang had done anything wrong, and that he would certainly take Huang on an Asia trip.

In an article dated November 9, 2026, Ben Berkowitz writes that Trump was asked Sunday night whether he is taking Huang on an Asia trip next week. Axios quotes Trump telling reporters: “I don't know, but I'd certainly take him.” Axios then quotes two more lines: “I haven't heard that he's done anything wrong,” and “He dealt with somebody but, you know, so does everybody else.”

Those sentences are Axios’s account of remarks to reporters. This page does not have a separate transcript. Axios frames the board review as an investigation into an affair with a suspected Chinese spy. The board’s own November 8 wording is the “foreign intelligence effort” sentence quoted above. Huang’s published email admits an affair and names no one else.

When is Nvidia’s next earnings call?

NVIDIA set its third-quarter fiscal 2027 call for Tuesday, November 17, 2026, at 2 p.m. Pacific time, the day before the briefing date in the House letter.

The October 28, 2026 notice says the call covers the third quarter of fiscal year 2027, which ended October 25, 2026. The webcast is listen-only on investor.nvidia.com. Questions are limited to financial analysts and institutional investors. Written commentary from Colette Kress, executive vice president and chief financial officer, is to be posted after results are announced at about 1:20 p.m. Pacific time. The same notice calls NVIDIA “the world leader in AI and accelerated computing.”

The November 18 briefing in the House letter is the calendar day after that call. The letter does not mention earnings. The two dates are simply adjacent.

Why does this Nvidia investigation matter for AI?

NVIDIA builds the accelerated computers that train and serve the models inside AI products, and the reporting behind this review is about access to those chips.

An agent, on this site, is a language model plus the software that offers tools and brings results back. The longer account is How do AI agents work?. NVIDIA’s October 28 notice describes the company as the world leader in AI and accelerated computing. The Verge’s November 6 summary of the Times says the reported task was to learn about American AI chips and, potentially, to push for the most advanced of those chips to be sold to China. That is a question about who can buy the machines the models run on.

The November 8 record draws a line under what NVIDIA is willing to say while that question is open. The board says it has confidence in Huang and no reason to believe secrets were compromised, and it has started a review by independent directors and outside counsel. Huang says he will cooperate and keep leading. Congress has asked for a closed-door briefing and has not, on the documents checked for this page, received a published yes. None of those sentences is a finding about what, if anything, was disclosed.

FAQ

What is the Nvidia board investigation?

On November 8, 2026, NVIDIA’s board said it is opening an independent investigation because of reporting that founder and CEO Jensen Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. A committee of independent directors, with outside counsel, will run it. The board said it has no reason to believe national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised, and that it has confidence in Huang and his leadership team.

Is Jensen Huang still Nvidia’s CEO?

NVIDIA told CNBC on November 8, 2026, that Huang is committed to continuing to lead NVIDIA as CEO without interruption. His email the same day says he is fully committed to NVIDIA. The board said it has confidence in him. The investigation is open, and the board said it will give further updates as appropriate.

Did Jensen Huang’s email name Alice Huang?

The email NVIDIA published on November 8, 2026, says Huang was unfaithful to his wife. It names no other person. A November 4 letter from three House committee chairs asks him to brief Congress on his interactions with Megaspeed executive Alice Huang, whom the letter calls a publicly reported PRC intelligence asset.

Did Nvidia say secrets were taken?

NVIDIA’s board said on November 8, 2026, that it has no reason to believe national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised, and that the inquiry will examine all available information. The board has not published findings.

When does Congress want a briefing from Jensen Huang?

The November 4, 2026, letter asks Huang to brief the committees on November 18, 2026, in room 2172 of the Rayburn House Office Building, and to accept that date or offer another session day by November 11, 2026. This page has no published reply from Huang accepting the date.

When is Nvidia’s next earnings call?

NVIDIA said on October 28, 2026, that it will discuss third-quarter fiscal 2027 results on Tuesday, November 17, 2026, at 2 p.m. Pacific time. That is the day before the briefing date in the House letter.