SANTA CLARA, California / CryptoWire.AI / – Prominent figures in crypto and artificial intelligence have criticized Nvidia’s decision to accept the resignation of co-founder Jensen Huang, with several calling it a mistake. Nvidia said on Thursday, November 12, that Huang had stepped down as chief executive and left its board after 33 years leading the company. Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress was named interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor.
The departure followed media reports of extramarital affairs, including one with a businesswoman whom U.S. intelligence officials reportedly suspected of links to China. Huang acknowledged being unfaithful to his wife in a message to employees on Sunday. Nvidia said it had no reason to believe its secrets or national security were compromised, and its independent investigation is continuing. China’s government called the allegations baseless. No evidence has been made public that Huang knowingly shared information with a foreign government.
Investors reacted sharply. Nvidia shares fell as much as 14% shortly after the market opened on Thursday before recovering part of the loss. The stock closed down 4.3% at $166.19, according to CBS News. Nvidia, whose processors power many of the world’s AI data centers, ranked third by market value behind Apple and Microsoft on Thursday morning. Its next earnings report is due on November 17, the first major financial update since Huang left.
Crypto leaders question the decision
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said it was a mistake for Nvidia to let Huang resign. Bitcoin entrepreneur Dan Held, a former Kraken executive, agreed and argued that Huang’s personal problems should be weighed against the company he built. Erik Voorhees, founder of ShapeShift and privacy-focused AI platform Venice, described the episode as a coup. He questioned what evidence showed that the woman at the center of the reports was a Chinese spy.
Singaporean authorities have said they lacked sufficient evidence to establish that she committed a crime, Decrypt reported. Bitcoin investor Anthony Pompliano urged followers not to be distracted by the headlines, saying open-source AI is essential to the freedom of billions of people. Voorhees also asked whether a decentralized version of Hugging Face exists yet. Nvidia agreed in September to buy the open-source AI platform for about $12.9 billion, with closing expected in the first half of 2027.
Open-source fears and security concerns
Some developers fear that Nvidia without Huang may be less willing to champion open-weight AI models, which can be downloaded and run outside the companies that built them. Open-source advocate Jun Song claimed rival AI labs had lobbied to restrict open weights, a claim that remains unproven. In July, Nvidia joined Microsoft, IBM, Hugging Face and dozens of other groups to launch the Open Secure AI Alliance. Epic Games chief Tim Sweeney called the exit a sad day for developers.
Not everyone backed Huang. Republican Senator Kevin Cramer of North Dakota had called for his exit, warning of blackmail risks and saying the internal investigation was insufficient. President Donald Trump told reporters that Huang was suffering but would be in good shape. Elon Musk replied to a user urging him to hire Huang that it would be an honor. Nvidia’s board said it will consider candidates from both inside and outside the company for the permanent role.