What to know about Nvidia CEO controversy as Trump defends Jensen Huang
The world's largest artificial intelligence infrastructure company Nvidia has opened an investigation into CEO Jensen Huang for having an affair with a Chinese businesswoman who U.S. intelligence officials
believe to be a Chinese spy.
The New York Times published a story on Nov. 8 reporting that Huang may have been the target of a foreign espionage operation led by a woman named Alice Huang. Jensen Huang and Alice Huang are not related.
Nvidia opened its investigation after Jensen Huang acknowledged being "unfaithful" to his wife and apologized to his family. His admission followed an earlier New York Times story reporting he had a romantic relationship with Alice Huang.
President Donald Trump confirmed he was briefed on the spying allegation earlier this year but took no action.
"I think he's an honorable guy," Trump said about Jensen Huang on Nov. 8.
Nvidia's board said in a statement it had "no reason to believe that either national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised." Jensen Huang currently remains as Nvidia's CEO. Nvidia's AI chips are some of the world's most sophisticated and underpin the United States' advantage in the race for AI dominance.
More: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, alleged 'sexpionage' target, is not the first
Who is Jensen Huang?
A dual U.S.-Taiwanese national, 63-year-old Jensen Huang cofounded Nvidia in 1993. He has served as the president and CEO of the company since its establishment.
Jensen Huang is also related to Lisa Su, the president and CEO of semiconductor company Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). The two are first cousins once removed.
As of Nov. 9, Jensen Huang was ranked by Forbes as the world's 11th richest billionaire, with a net worth of $154 billion. However, his net worth was falling on Nov. 9, by nearly $8 billion.
Who is Alice Huang?
Alice Huang is a former executive of a Singapore-based company Megaspeed. U.S. authorities investigated and concluded Megaspeed, which buys AI chips from Nvidia, was a Chinese intelligence asset.
U.S. officials allege that Alice Huang was recruited by Beijing's top spy agency, China's Ministry of State Security, to collect information about American AI chips, The New York Times reported.
Contributing: Reuters
Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.
Kim Hjelmgaard is an investigative journalist covering global stories for USA TODAY, from living rooms to conflict zones. He is based in London.