Nvidia is facing an unusually difficult CEO succession after co-founder Jensen Huang announced his resignation on Thursday, following reports of multiple extramarital affairs. According to Sina Finance, Apple, Alphabet and Uber continued to perform well after their high-profile founders left, but their transitions were generally less abrupt. Apple had a designated successor when Steve Jobs resigned in 2011; Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin left management in 2019, and Alphabet shares have gained more than 300% under CEO Sundar Pichai. Travis Kalanick left Uber in 2017 amid scandals and governance disputes, and Dara Khosrowshahi later led a turnaround.
Nvidia's board is searching for a new CEO, while CFO Colette Kress is serving as interim leader. University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business management professor Michael Withers said the successor will have to address the fallout from Huang's departure, preserve key relationships and establish an independent leadership style. The company also faces competition from AMD and cloud providers developing their own chips. Investors said Nvidia's product roadmap for the coming years is set and will not change because of Huang's departure.