Independent directors will examine whether Jensen Huang was targeted by a foreign intelligence effort and whether company or national security was affected.
SANTA CLARA, CA — Nvidia’s board has opened an independent investigation into whether founder and CEO Jensen Huang was targeted by a foreign intelligence operation after Huang acknowledged being unfaithful to his wife amid reports linking him to a Chinese businesswoman suspected by U.S. officials of working for Beijing.
The investigation brings national security scrutiny directly to one of the most influential executives in the global artificial intelligence industry. Nvidia said Sunday that a committee of independent directors, aided by outside counsel, will review the available information. The company said it currently has no reason to believe U.S. national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised. Huang has agreed to cooperate and is expected to continue leading the company during the review.
Huang addressed employees Sunday in a message published by Nvidia, saying he owed his family and the company an apology. “I was unfaithful to my wife,” Huang wrote. He said his actions hurt his wife and children and that he took full responsibility. His public message did not identify the person with whom he had the relationship.
News reports have connected the disclosure to Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, a former executive at Singapore-based data center company Megaspeed. She is not related to Jensen Huang. The New York Times previously reported that U.S. intelligence officials had concluded Alice Huang was a Chinese intelligence asset and that she had developed a close relationship with the Nvidia chief executive. Other news organizations subsequently reported that the relationship had been intimate. The allegations about her intelligence role have not been established in a public court proceeding.
Megaspeed has also drawn scrutiny from U.S. authorities over concerns that advanced Nvidia artificial intelligence chips could have reached China despite American export restrictions. Those controls, expanded since 2022, are designed to limit China’s access to some of the most advanced computing technology used to build and operate powerful AI systems. Nvidia has become a central company in that technology competition because its processors are widely used to train and run advanced AI models.
Nvidia’s board said its investigation was prompted by reporting that Jensen Huang had been the target of a foreign intelligence effort. The board said U.S. national and economic security are important to the company and its shareholders and that investigators will examine all available information. It also expressed confidence in Huang and his leadership team. Nvidia has not announced a timetable for completing the review.
Huang said he supports the investigation and will cooperate fully. He also said he remains committed to protecting Nvidia and supporting U.S. national security. In his message to employees, Huang apologized to colleagues, directors, business partners and shareholders, saying he had fallen short of his responsibility to maintain their trust. He said he remained fully committed to leading the company.
The review is also drawing attention in Congress. The Republican chairmen of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, House Select Committee on China and House Intelligence Committee have asked Huang to participate in a joint closed-door briefing about his interactions with Alice Huang and Nvidia’s safeguards against foreign espionage. The lawmakers requested a briefing on Nov. 18 and asked Huang to accept that date or offer an alternative by Nov. 11.
The lawmakers said recent reports raised questions about China’s potential access to sensitive U.S. technology and information. The congressional request does not establish that Huang provided classified, proprietary or national security information to anyone. Nvidia has said it has no reason at this stage to believe company secrets or U.S. national security were compromised.
The controversy comes at a sensitive time for Nvidia, whose rapid growth has made it one of the world’s most valuable technology companies and Huang one of the most prominent figures in the AI industry. Huang has led Nvidia for more than three decades and has played a central role in its shift from a graphics-chip company into the dominant supplier of processors used for advanced artificial intelligence. Questions about his leadership therefore carry potential consequences for employees, investors and customers around the world.
For now, Huang remains CEO and Nvidia has said he will continue leading the company without interruption. Independent directors and outside lawyers will conduct the board inquiry, while congressional committees are seeking their own briefing. The company said it will provide further updates as appropriate.
Author note: Last updated November 8, 2026.