Jensen Huang, NVIDIA CEO (Chief Executive Officer), who has been embroiled in controversy over an affair with a woman identified as a Chinese spy, is now facing allegations that he was also involved in an extramarital relationship with a female executive at his own company. The controversy is spreading, with discussions even arising about the possibility of a violation of NVIDIA's internal code of ethics.
The New York Times reported on the 12th, based on testimonies from five former NVIDIA employees, that CEO Huang had an extramarital relationship with Kimberly Powell, NVIDIA Vice President of Healthcare. Vice President Powell is an executive who reports to CEO Huang, and both individuals are married, each having a spouse.
According to the report, during the NVIDIA annual developer conference 'GTC' held in San Jose, California, USA in March, the two were seen displaying affection at a nearby hotel. It was reported that someone present at the scene filmed this on a mobile phone. However, The New York Times stated that it had not directly verified the video.
Testimonies also emerged stating that after CEO Huang's security team discovered the person filming, they took them aside separately and proposed signing a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). The NYT reported this by citing three officials who were briefed on the situation at the time.
Vice President Powell joined NVIDIA in 2008, was promoted to Senior Director of AI (Artificial Intelligence) Business Development in 2016, and became Vice President of Healthcare at the end of 2017. She is currently in charge of a business applying NVIDIA semiconductor technology to the medical and education sectors, including medical imaging equipment. At GTC in March, she also gave a presentation on technological advancements in the medical and life sciences fields utilizing AI.
This suspicion is intertwined with NVIDIA's internal code of ethics. The NVIDIA Code of Conduct stipulates that employees must avoid situations that could lead to conflicts of interest, including personal relationships. The company has also explicitly stated its policy of promptly investigating reports of inappropriate conduct.
When The New York Times asked CEO Huang by phone about his relationship with Vice President Powell, he said, "I don't think I should talk to you directly," and then hung up the phone. NVIDIA refused to comment, and Vice President Powell did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Previously, CEO Huang admitted to an affair with Alice Huang, a Chinese female businesswoman whom US intelligence agencies determined to be a collaborator of Chinese intelligence agencies. The NVIDIA board of directors began investigating the matter this month, and the US law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz has been tasked with conducting the investigation.
The leadership of the Republican Party in three major standing committees of the US House of Representatives is also demanding a closed-door briefing from CEO Huang explaining the circumstances of his contact with Alice Huang. The Chinese government denies the related espionage suspicions.
Following suspicions of involvement with Chinese intelligence agencies, the emergence of a relationship with an internal executive has caused the controversy surrounding CEO Huang to expand beyond personal privacy into issues of NVIDIA's management ethics and internal controls.
in TECH
