NVIDIA board investigation into reports that CEO Jensen Huang was targeted by foreign intelligence, Digi Mart USA News: NVIDIA’s board of directors said on Sunday that it will launch an independent investigation following reports that Chief Executive Jensen Huang was targeted by foreign intelligence agencies. The board said it will review all available information related to reports about an intelligence operation aimed at the company’s CEO.
NBC News said it has not independently confirmed the reports.
The New York Times and Financial Times reported that Huang had a relationship with Chinese businesswoman Alice Huang. According to both outlets, Alice Huang had been recruited by China to conduct espionage.
NBC News said it has not verified either report and has requested comment from the Trump administration.
In a statement, NVIDIA said: “In light of recent reports that founder and CEO Jensen Huang has become the target of foreign intelligence activity, NVIDIA’s Board of Directors is launching an independent investigation.” The company said a committee of independent directors, assisted by outside independent legal counsel, will oversee the investigation. NVIDIA also said there is no reason to believe national security or its confidential information has been compromised.
The New York Times and Financial Times reported that Alice Huang is a Chinese citizen whose Singapore-registered company was purchasing NVIDIA’s advanced chips at the time. The outlets reported that she had been under surveillance by U.S.
intelligence agencies, which found that China’s top intelligence body had recruited her for espionage. The New York Times also reported on Sunday that concerns within the U.S.
government about Alice Huang and Jensen Huang had reached Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The Financial Times reported on Friday that the U.S.
government believes the two had a romantic relationship.
In a memo to NVIDIA employees shared with NBC News, Jensen Huang said he had been unfaithful to his wife and that his actions had hurt his wife and children. NVIDIA declined to comment on the Financial Times report and said Huang, like other chief executives, meets with “thousands of customer enterprise executives” each year.
In the memo, Huang apologized to his wife and family, expressing hope that they could move past the pain and that he could earn back their trust. He also said he had failed to meet his responsibilities to colleagues, the board, partners and shareholders, and committed to continuing to lead NVIDIA.
An NVIDIA spokesperson told NBC News that “today’s news will not slow” the company, and that Huang “will continue to serve as NVIDIA’s CEO without interruption, leading the company forward.”
