Nvidia's first emails to staff after Huang's exit back Kress as interim CEO

Jensen Huang has resigned as Nvidia's chief executive and left its board. CFO Colette Kress has stepped in as interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor among internal and external candidates 1

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. No one has given a reason for the resignation. Per Fortune, news of Huang's affairs preceded it 2

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Who is taking over

Kress has been Nvidia's chief financial officer for more than 13 years, according to board chair Harvey Jones's email to employees 1

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. She previously worked in senior finance roles at Cisco and Microsoft 2

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. Jones described her as a key architect of the company's growth and capital strategy 1

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. "The Board has full confidence in Colette to deliver on our commitments to shareholders, customers, partners, and to each of you," he wrote 1

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. That backing is the board's own claim, per his email. Kress, for her part, wrote to staff that she believes "deeply in this company and in its future" while acknowledging an "extraordinarily difficult period" 1

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The two emails, sent on Thursday November 12 and obtained by the news network CNBC from a source, are the company's first internal communication since the resignation 1

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. Jones sent first and Kress replied shortly after. Their stated purpose was to thank employees, acknowledge the difficult period and express confidence in the company's future and in Kress 1

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. Jones also says he will serve as the company's first-ever Chair of the Board 1

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The pushback

The confidence message sits against visible dissent. A self-identified Nvidia employee on X called the ouster "financial suicide, and I can only assume there is a hidden ulterior motive because I can't fathom any other reason for destroying the company's value" 2

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. Billionaires Bill Ackman and Elon Musk defended Huang online, with Musk agreeing to a post calling Huang irreplaceable for America's AI leadership 2

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. Ackman wrote that "@JensenHuang is human. And he is an incredible human. Even incredible humans make mistakes. Onward." 2

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. That backlash is documented, per Fortune, but comes from a handful of voices 2

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The market has its own verdict of sorts. Nvidia's value peaked above $5 trillion and has since fallen below $4 trillion after the affairs news and the resignation, per Fortune's framing 2

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. It was the first Fortune 500 company to pass $4 trillion 2

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. Per Semafor, citing two administration officials, Nvidia could also be drawn into Justice Department investigations, including an antitrust probe and two inquiries tied to the alleged Chinese spy Alice Huang 2

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. Semafor reported no sign criminal charges against Nvidia or Huang are intended 2

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Six days of waiting

In her email, Kress promised employees more word from leadership in the coming days 1

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. She set a company-wide meeting for November 18 at 9am Pacific, six days after the announcement and the day after Nvidia's third-quarter earnings on November 17 1

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. The company has given no reason for the six-day gap.

Communications professionals are split on the timing. Annie Scranton of Pace Public Relations and Amy Cuthbertson said the wait is too long and employees need answers sooner 2

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. Johan Konst called six days reasonable but wanted staff able to ask questions earlier 2

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