Market news · Nov 9, 7:02 PM ET

Nvidia Shares Slide as Board Probes CEO Jensen Huang's Ties to Alleged Chinese Spy

President Donald Trump said Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told him he had no idea Alice Huang was a spy, while the company's board opened an independent investigation into the relationship. The probe puts a spotlight on the company that leads the AI chip market, and on its China sales and its relations with Washington, which matter to US investors in Nvidia and in the broader semiconductor sector.

By Flash Finance US desk (written with AI assistance) · Editor: Kokila

Trump says the CEO was unaware

President Donald Trump said he spoke with Huang on Monday and that Huang denied knowing that the woman "was a spy." Trump told reporters at the White House that he was "amazed" by the allegations, according to CNBC. The president said he checked in on Huang mostly to see how he was doing, and he described Huang as an honorable man, per The Washington Sun.

Board launches a probe

On Sunday, the Nvidia board said it was 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 Huang had acknowledged the relationship in an email to employees and apologized for being unfaithful to his wife, according to NPR. Huang wrote that he supports the investigation and will cooperate fully, per the same report.

Who Alice Huang is

Alice Huang is a former Megaspeed executive, and she has reportedly been investigated over suspected links to Chinese intelligence. The New York Times and the Financial Times reported that she was a Chinese citizen whose Singapore-based company was buying Nvidia's advanced chips, and that she had been under surveillance by US intelligence, according to NBC News. The two Huangs are not related, per NBC News. China's foreign ministry called the spy allegation groundless, according to NPR.

What Nvidia has said

A company spokesman said Huang's interactions with Alice Huang were not unusual, noting that meetings with customers are part of a CEO's job. The company also said the news will not slow Nvidia, and that Huang remains CEO. Huang had earlier described his dealings with her as tied to Megaspeed, calling them completely normal and not unusual.

Why it matters for investors

Nvidia is the central company in this story, and its stock reacted on Monday. Yahoo Finance's live coverage reported that Nvidia (NVDA) stock faced growing pressure on Monday, with the drop put at 4% in one update and 5% in the page headline.

The political dimension may also weigh on the company. Huang is poised to face Hill investigations into his knowledge of the woman at the center of the scandal, Alice Huang, as well as his relationships with the White House and Commerce. Semafor reported that the Senate intelligence panel's top Democrat, Mark Warner of Virginia, demurred when asked whether Huang should testify. The Commerce Department and the White House did not respond to a request for comment.

What is still unknown

The company did not say when the probe would conclude or what it would examine in detail. Reports describe a federal inquiry into the matter, and Trump told reporters the CEO should not worry about it. Investors should watch for the board's findings, any congressional hearing requests, and any move by Commerce on China chip licenses.

NVDA stock page

NvidiaJensen HuangAlice HuangMegaspeedDonald TrumpAI chips

Sources

Written with AI assistance on Nov 9, 7:02 PM ET from the reports listed under Sources, and reviewed by our editor after publication. Before it was published, every figure was checked against those reports, and passages with figures that could not be found there were left out. It can still contain mistakes: read the sources before acting on anything. How we review. Not investment advice.