The board of Nvidia on Sunday said that it was opening an independent investigation following reports that CEO Jensen Huang had been targeted by a foreign intelligence effort.
The announcement followed reporting by The New York Times and the Financial Times about Huang’s relationship with Alice Huang, a Chinese business woman whom the outlets reported had been recruited to spy for China. The two are not related.
NBC News has not confirmed either report and has reached out to the Trump administration for comment.
“The NVIDIA 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,” the company said in a statement.
“A committee of independent directors, assisted by outside independent counsel, will oversee the investigation. The Board prioritizes U.S. national and economic security, which is paramount to the interests of NVIDIA and its shareholders.”
The company added that it “has no reason to believe that either national security or NVIDIA secrets were compromised, the Board’s inquiry will examine all available information.”
In memo to Nvidia employees shared by the company with NBC News, Huang said: “I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did.”
The New York Times and the Financial Times reported that Alice Huang, a Chinese citizen whose Singapore-based company was buying Nvidia’s advanced chips, had been under surveillance by U.S. intelligence agencies. Those agencies, the reports said, found that Alice Huang had been recruited to spy by China’s top intelligence agency.
Jensen Huang and Nvidia, for years, have been at the forefront of the artificial intelligence boom. Nvidia’s products are the most highly-sought after chips in the world, however its top-tier products are mostly restricted from being sold to customers in China due to national security fears.
China has long sought to become a global leader in AI. President Xi Jinping set a 2030 deadline to surpass the capabilities of American AI systems.
Huang, 63, essentially serves as an ambassador for the industry, regularly appearing alongside the likes of President Donald Trump, King Charles, and at conferences to tout his company and what he says will be immense payoff in the future from AI.
In October, Trump awarded Huang the National Medal of Science, one of the nation’s highest honors for achievement in science and technology.
Nvidia is the world’s second largest publicly traded company as of Friday, worth nearly $4.5 trillion. That’s up more than 500% over the last five years.
Huang has also seen his wealth balloon leading the company. His net worth has soared from around $25 billion at the start of 2022 to almost $160 billion, making him the world’s 10th-richest person, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
In the latest series of these reports, published on Sunday afternoon by the New York Times, the paper reported that concerns inside the U.S. government about Alice Huang and Jensen Huang rose as high as involving Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
On Friday, the FT reported that the U.S government believed that Jensen Huang had a romantic relationship with Alice Huang. In response to that story, the FT reported that Nvidia declined to comment and said that Jensen Huang meets “thousands of customer executives every year” as any CEO normally does.
Huang previously defended his interactions with Alice Huang, describing them as business-related in a recent statement: “Our relationship, our interactions, have been related to Megaspeed, and it was all completely normal and not unusual.”
In Sunday’s memo, Huang wrote: “To my wife and family: I love you. I know an apology cannot undo what I have done. I hope our family will heal and that, over time, I can earn back your trust.”
The email to employees continued: “To my colleagues at NVIDIA, including those I have worked alongside for decades, and to our board, partners, and shareholders around the world: you deserve better from me. Leading NVIDIA is the privilege of my life. My responsibility is to serve you and be worthy of your trust. I have fallen short of that responsibility. I am fully committed to NVIDIA and will work to earn back your confidence.”
A spokesperson for Nvidia told NBC News that “today’s news will not slow” the company and that Huang was “committed to continuing to lead NVIDIA as CEO without interruption.”
Before Sunday’s announcement, Nvidia and Huang were already facing congressional scrutiny over the reports about Megaspeed and its executive. On Thursday, top House Republicans requested a briefing from Huang about the reports.
“Recent reports raise significant national security concerns regarding the PRC’s access to sensitive U.S. technology and information,” said Michigan Rep. John Moolenaar, who is also chairman of the House Select Committee on China.
“It is vital that Congress determines the extent to which U.S. national security has been placed at risk,” a letter to Nvidia read.
