Episode 601
Chips Down: Nvidia CEO resigns amid reports of a suspected spy link
Jensen Huang — the longtime Nvidia CEO — is out after reports about romantic relationships, including one woman suspected (but not proven) of ties to Chinese intelligence and another alleged affair with a company employee. I’m a nerd, so of course I had to yap about it: he resigned from the CEO spot and the board, and Nvidia stock took a hit. The Wall Street Journal’s already hinting shareholders might even be better off without him, which is wild after he built the whole empire. Look, the spying claim hasn’t been proven, but when you run the planet’s most important AI company, “she’s not a spy” isn’t exactly comforting. Moral of the story: you can make trillions in chips, but if you don’t manage your personal firmware, HR will have your box ready before you find your pants.
Takeaways:
- I walk through Jensen Huang getting ousted from Nvidia after reports about romantic relationships.
- I warn one woman was alleged to have ties to Chinese intelligence, but that allegation isn't proven.
- I point out a second reported affair involved a company employee, which raises clear HR and ethics problems.
- I note Nvidia stock dipped and the Wall Street Journal even suggested shareholders might be better off without him.
- I riff on the absurdity: three decades building an AI empire, and HR boxes show up over bad hookups.
Transcript
Good morning.
Speaker A:And taste act.
Speaker A:One of the biggest names in the tech world is now out of a job.
Speaker A:I'm sure you've seen the headlines by now.
Speaker A:I'm a nerd, so I've got to talk about this.
Speaker A:Talking, of course, about Jensen Huang.
Speaker A:The guy who helped to build Nvidia into the absolute monster of a company, was ousted yesterday after reports surfaced about his romantic relationships.
Speaker A:And not just some ordinary corporate sex scandal.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:One of the women was suspected of being connected to Chinese intelligence, so suspected of being a Chinese spy.
Speaker A:Now, now, to be clear, the spying allegation has not been proven.
Speaker A:But when you're running one of the most important AI companies.
Speaker A:No, the most important AI company on the planet, saying, honey, she's not a spy is not a particularly reassuring explanation.
Speaker A:And so, because one alleged affair isn't enough, reports started to surface about another relationship, this one with a company employee.
Speaker A:So yesterday, Jensen Huang resign.
Speaker A:No longer the CEO of Nvidia, no longer on the board of directors.
Speaker A:This is a guy who makes computer chips for a living, but apparently could not keep his own hardware under control.
Speaker A:Now, Nvidia stock has been taking a little bit of a beating, but here's where the story gets really, really interesting to me.
Speaker A:The Wall Street Journal is already suggesting that shareholders will probably be better off without him.
Speaker A:You think about that.
Speaker A:You build a multi trillion dollar business, help to kick off the AI revolution, become one of the most powerful executives on the planet, and the minute you're gone, Wall street says, well, actually, we might save some money.
Speaker A:There is corporate America for you.
Speaker A:You spend 30 years building this empire.
Speaker A:But if you're not careful about who you're sleeping with, HR will have your cardboard box ready before you've ever even found your pants.
Speaker A:Uh oh.
Speaker A:She was a Chinese spy sent as a honey trap.
Speaker A:He's a tech CEO now.
Speaker A:He will be let go.
Speaker A:And then to make it worse for his company, he had another affair.
Speaker B:With his only employee.
Speaker A:Nvidia stocks down.
Speaker A:Nvidia put him in an unemployment line.
Speaker A:Jensen Huang cheated on his wife.
Speaker A:And now Jensen Wang's done tonight.
Speaker A:What Jensen Huang did wasn't right.
Speaker A:And now Jensen Wang's done tonight.
Speaker A:And now Jensen Wang's done tonight.
Speaker A:And now Jensen Wang's done tonight.
Speaker A:And now Jensen Wang's done tonight.
