Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang is once again involved in the extramarital affair controversy. The New York Times quoted five former Huida employees on November 11 as saying that in addition to his previous extramarital affair with Alice Huang, a businesswoman suspected of being a Chinese spy, Huang also developed an extramarital relationship with another Huida senior executive, Kimberly Powell, the current vice president of healthcare, and reported directly to Huang.
Jen-Hsun Huang reveals his second extramarital affair
The report pointed out that Huang Renxun is 63 years old and Powell is 48 years old. Both of them are married. Five people who have worked at Huida said that the relationship had not been made public in the past, but people within the company had known about it for a long time.
Two of the sources revealed that during Huida’s annual GTC Developer Conference in San Jose, California, in March this year, Huang Jen-Hsun and Powell were photographed interacting closely at a local hotel. The New York Times stated that it has not obtained or viewed the video, so the relevant content is still the source's statement.
In addition, three people familiar with the incident said that the security guard accompanying Huang Jen-Hsun noticed that someone was filming with a mobile phone, and then took the person away from the scene and asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).
When a New York Times reporter asked Jen-Hsun Huang about his relationship with Powell over the phone on Wednesday, Huang responded: "I don't think you should talk to me about this directly." Then he hung up the phone. Huida declined to comment, while Powell has not yet responded to media inquiries.
After the news came to light, Huida's share price fell by about 8% in after-hours trading.
Kimberly Powell has been with Huida for 18 years and reports directly to Jensen Huang
According to Huida's official website and Powell's LinkedIn profile, she joined Huida in 2008 and has been responsible for business development in the healthcare field for a long time. She mainly promotes the application of Huida chip technology in fields such as higher education, medical care and medical imaging equipment.
Powell was promoted to senior director of artificial intelligence business development in 2016, and was further promoted to vice president of healthcare at the end of 2017. He later represented Huida at global technology industry events and related forums.
In March this year, she also gave a speech at Huida's annual GTC conference, introducing how artificial intelligence can help achieve breakthroughs in the medical and biotechnology fields. Huang Renxun's cartoon image was also used in the briefing.
It is worth noting that Huida’s employee code of conduct requires employees to avoid situations that may create conflicts of interest, including personal relationships, and promises to promptly investigate any reports of misconduct. Many large companies also have policies prohibiting supervisors from developing close relationships with direct reports.
Therefore, if the relevant accusations are true, in addition to involving Huang Renxun's personal life, this incident may also raise issues such as corporate governance, supervisory authority and internal conflicts of interest.
The suspicion of Chinese espionage has not yet subsided, Huida’s board of directors has launched an investigation
Huang Jen-Hsun's previous relationship with Alice Huang, a Chinese businesswoman, is still under investigation and political controversy when the news broke again.
The New York Times reported last month that U.S. intelligence officials determined that Alice Huang, who had developed a close relationship with Huang, had a background in Chinese intelligence agencies and was suspected of helping to transfer Huida's advanced chips to China. The Chinese government has denied the espionage accusations, and Huang has not yet responded to media requests for comment.
After Huang admitted to having an extramarital affair with Alice Huang, Huida's board of directors announced this month it would launch an independent investigation, with assistance from outside law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz.
In addition, the chairs of three influential committees of the U.S. House of Representatives have also asked Huang to attend a closed briefing to explain his dealings with Alice Huang.
There have been cases in the past in U.S. companies where CEOs developed close relationships with subordinates, leading to job disputes. Former Intel CEO Brian Krzanich resigned in 2018 after admitting to having had consensual relationships with employees; former McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook was dismissed in 2019 for violating company policies and developing sexual relationships with multiple employees, and the company later filed a lawsuit against him.
As Huang Renxun has been accused of different extramarital affairs one after another, the incident has further expanded from the initial suspicion of Chinese espionage to the level of internal management and corporate governance of the company. For Huida, the global leader in AI chips, whether the subsequent independent investigation can clarify relevant accusations and how the board of directors handles the relationship between the CEO and his direct subordinates will become the focus of the market.
