Colette Kress took over the helm at Nvidia on Thursday (Nov. 12) with immediate effect, after Jensen Huang resigned as chairman, CEO, and board member following two extramarital affairs that triggered investigations by the FBI, the U.S. Congress, and the company itself. The NVDC34 BDR fell 10.5% on the B3; on the Nasdaq, the stock dropped as much as 14% before paring its losses.
What Happened at Nvidia?
Jensen Huang stepped down on November 12, 2026, from his roles as chairman, CEO, and board member, effective immediately. He led the company he co-founded in 1993 for 33 years—transforming it from a maker of gaming graphics cards into the second-most valuable company in the world. His departure was not driven by financial performance, but by a personal crisis that escalated far too quickly for the board to ignore.
The timeline is brief and dense:
The Two Scandals That Toppled a 33-Year Legacy
The first affair began as a national security investigation. Alice Huang, an executive at Megaspeed—Nvidia's primary business partner in Southeast Asia—was identified by the New York Times as a recruitment target for China's Ministry of State Security. According to the Times, the objective was to extract strategic information regarding Nvidia's AI chips by leveraging her access to Huang. When the board launched an independent investigation—retaining the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz through former federal prosecutor in New York Joon H. Kim—the operation drew the attention of the FBI and congressional committees. The details of the espionage scandal that broke the case wide open illustrate the scale of the operation.
The crisis gained a second layer on Wednesday (Nov. 11): the New York Times reported that Huang also maintained a relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's VP of healthcare and his direct subordinate. Two affairs. Two vectors of risk—one involving national security, the other corporate governance. Together, they made Huang's position untenable for any reasonably constituted board of directors.
Beyond the investigations, the company faces a shareholder class-action lawsuit. Attorneys had not yet announced the scope of the suit by press time, but it follows the standard pattern: alleging that the company failed to disclose risks that shareholders needed to know before making investment decisions.
Who Is Colette Kress— and What Is the Message to the Market?
Kress has served as Nvidia's CFO for 13 years. She joined in September 2013 from Cisco and Microsoft, where she spent nearly 25 years in corporate finance. Alongside Huang, she was the executive most visible to analysts and investors—consistently leading the financial commentary on earnings calls. The board knows her. The market knows her.
Under her tenure as CFO, Nvidia's revenue grew from approximately $4.1 billion in fiscal 2013 to $215.9 billion in 2026—a 52-fold increase. While this is not solely her achievement, no one has tracked that growth more closely with greater operational responsibility for the numbers. In her official statement upon stepping up, she noted: "I am committed to building upon the extraordinary foundation that Jensen has created over the last 33 years." For details on the formal announcement, see the complete record of the leadership transition.
The board also appointed Harvey C. Jones—a tech industry veteran of more than 30 years and former CEO of Synopsys—as the first chairman of the board in Nvidia's history. The company had never previously separated the roles of board chair and CEO; Huang held both positions simultaneously. This formal separation represents a significant governance shift alongside the change in leadership.
The board has initiated a search for a permanent CEO without a set deadline, evaluating both internal and external candidates. Until a successor is named, leadership uncertainty will weigh on the share price.
The Cost of the Crisis— and Where Analysts See the Stock Headed
On the Nasdaq, Nvidia shares opened down 12%, hit an intraday low of $148.80, and traded around $160 (-7.8%) at publication—marking a new 52-week low. On the B3, the NVDC34 BDR declined by a corresponding amount.
Intraday low; pared losses to -8% over the trading session
Nvidia's BDR in the Brazilian market
Since the October 2026 peak, according to market data
The cumulative losses from October through yesterday (Nov. 11) were already substantial: Nvidia fell from $5.149 trillion to $4.068 trillion—a loss of $1.081 trillion, equivalent to roughly R$ 6 trillion at recent exchange rates. Following Thursday's drop, the company fell below $4 trillion for the first time since 2025. This marks six consecutive weeks of declines, the longest losing streak since 2012.
Wall Street research firms have already revised their targets. Bernstein cut its price target in half, from $400 to $200. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives was more precise: "$300 per share with Jensen as CEO; $225 without him"—implying a $75-per-share premium attributed directly to the CEO. William Blair downgraded the stock to neutral. Questar Capital Partners labeled the stock "uninvestable" until a clear succession plan is in place. On the flip side, AMD shares rose 3% on the news, signaling that the market is betting on a redistribution of chip orders at the margins.
What NVDC34 Investors Should Monitor
Short-term risk is concentrated in three key dates and events:
November 17 — Quarterly Earnings — The first public remarks under Kress's leadership. The market will be watching to see if next quarter's guidance is maintained and whether Colette will host the call alone. Any sign of operational weakness will amplify the sell-off, while a reaffirmation of the pipeline could help stabilize the stock.
Appointment of a Permanent CEO — No timeline has been disclosed. An internal candidate would signal strategic continuity, whereas a high-profile external hire—such as an executive from another big tech firm—could recover a portion of the leadership premium. An extended interim period is the worst-case scenario for the stock price.
Results of FBI and Congressional Investigations — If Chinese espionage is confirmed with concrete data originating from within the company, the risk of new chip export restrictions to Asia increases, directly impacting revenue. The U.S. Department of Commerce had not commented by press time.
Nvidia without Jensen Huang remains a leader in AI chips—its hardware platform and CUDA ecosystem will not disappear with the CEO. What the market priced in today is the departure of the strategy's chief architect: the man who convinced the world that a graphics card company was the foundational pillar of artificial intelligence. Wedbush estimates this premium is worth $75 per share, which vanished from the share price following his resignation but could return depending on whom the board appoints. The next concrete inflection point is November 17, when the company releases its quarterly earnings under new management. It will be the first test of how Kress positions herself before the market without Huang at her side.
