Nvidia Board Opens Independent Investigation Into Reports CEO Jensen Huang Was Targeted by Foreign Intelligence

Nvidia's board of directors said on Sunday, November 8, 2026, that it is opening an independent investigation after reports that founder and chief executive Jensen Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. A committee of independent directors, assisted by outside counsel, will oversee the inquiry, the board said in a statement on its newsroom site.

The board said it has no reason to believe that either national security or Nvidia's secrets were compromised, and that its inquiry will examine all available information. It said Huang fully supports the review and has committed to cooperating with it, and that it has confidence in Huang and his leadership team. A company spokesperson told CNN that Huang will keep leading Nvidia as chief executive without interruption.

The reports behind the review

The statement follows reporting about Huang's relationship with Alice Huang, a former executive at Megaspeed, a Singapore-based company that builds data centers in Southeast Asia. The two are not related. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that United States officials concluded last year that Alice Huang was sharing information with the Chinese government while she worked with Nvidia to build data centers in Asia. Those claims are allegations reported by officials, not findings of a court, and the reporting does not say she has been charged. The Financial Times previously reported that United States officials believed the two were in a romantic relationship, and several outlets have reported that officials suspect she passed intelligence to China and helped move advanced AI chips into the country.

Huang apologizes to staff

In a note to staff on Sunday, Huang, 63, said he had been unfaithful and apologized to his family and to employees, CNN and The Wall Street Journal reported. He did not name the woman in the note. "I take full responsibility for what I did and the hurt I caused, and I accept the criticism that comes with it," he wrote, adding that he supports the board investigation and is committed to protecting Nvidia and supporting America's national security. Nvidia had previously said that Huang's meetings with customers were "not unusual or unexpected" and that concerns about illegal chip diversion were "debunked last year."

Congress is asking questions too

The board acted days after three House committee chairmen, Brian Mast, John Moolenaar and Rick Crawford, wrote to Huang on November 4, 2026, asking him to give a joint closed-door briefing on November 18, 2026, about Nvidia's security protocols and his interactions with Alice Huang, and to respond by November 11, 2026. Senator Chris Coons said on Saturday that he would investigate the matter. Megaspeed was spun off from a Chinese company in 2023, and the Commerce Department began investigating the company in 2024. Megaspeed has previously said it is a compliant and legitimate company. Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs has said it conducted no such investigations into Alice Huang over alleged ties to China, and China's embassy in Washington has rejected the spying allegations.

What is at stake

Nvidia is the world's leading maker of AI chips, with a market value of about 4.5 trillion dollars. Huang has lobbied governments to let chips flow freely to overseas buyers, and critics in Washington have questioned whether that push puts national security at risk. The board said it will provide further updates as appropriate and gave no deadline for the investigation.