By Steve Kopack,Rob Wile
Publication Date: 2026-11-09 15:56:00
Nvidia’s stock slid about 4% on Monday after the company announced that it had opened an investigation into CEO Jensen Huang’s relationship with a woman that U.S. intelligence agencies say is a Chinese spy.
The probe has the potential to unsettle the entire AI boom, fueled by trillions of dollars of spending and investments, in part to purchase Nvidia’s cutting-edge AI chips. Nvidia’s drop wiped out more than $200 billion in value.
The CEO, who also founded the company more than three decades ago, admitted in a note to employees he had been unfaithful to his wife. “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,” Huang’s email also said.
In recent days, the Financial Times and The New York Times reported that Huang had a relationship with a Chinese businesswoman named Alice Huang. A person with knowledge of the matter told NBC News that U.S. intelligence agencies had determined that Alice Huang was a Chinese spy. The two Huangs are unrelated.
China has dismissed the espionage allegations as a “smears.” The company where Alice Huang allegedly works, Megaspeed, did not return requests for comment.
“A committee of independent directors, assisted by outside independent counsel, will oversee the investigation,” Nvidia said in a Sunday statement. “The Board prioritizes U.S. national and economic security, which is paramount to the…
