Nvidia board: Jensen Huang’s resignation as president, CEO and director takes effect immediately; Colette Kress appointed interim CEO
Nvidia’s board announced on November 12, 2026, that co-founder Jensen Huang has resigned as the company’s president, chief executive officer and a member of the board, effective immediately. Colette Kress, the current executive vice president and chief financial officer, has been appointed interim CEO and will continue to serve as CFO until the board determines a permanent successor. The board has launched a search process, considering both internal and external candidates, and has appointed Harvey C. Jones as the first board chairman.
U.S. President Donald Trump posted on a social platform on the same day that Huang has done an excellent job, but that there is only one person who can succeed him — Tim Cook of Apple, saying that legend succeeds legend. Cook previously stepped down as Apple CEO in September 2026 and is now the company’s executive chairman.
Huang’s relationship with Nvidia is now limited to that of a shareholder. According to the company’s 2026 proxy statement, as of March 2026 he beneficially owned about 870.6 million shares, or about 3.58%, with most held through trusts and entities jointly controlled with his wife; the company has a single-class common stock structure with no super-voting rights. The announcement only thanked him for 33 years of contributions and did not mention any advisory or other formal role arrangement.
Original sources:
Title: NVIDIA Announces CEO Transition
Publisher: NVIDIA
Publication date: 2026-11-12
URL: nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-announces-ceo-transition
Source type: official announcement
Verification status: full text actually read in this instance, verification date 2026-11-12
Supporting content: supports the core facts that Huang’s resignation as president, CEO and director takes effect immediately, Kress becomes interim CEO and continues as CFO, the board launches a search for internal and external candidates, and Jones is appointed first chairman, among others
ABAB AI Insight
Since joining Nvidia in September 2013, Colette Kress has led financial strategy, capital allocation and investor relations, during which the company’s revenue grew from about $4.3 billion in fiscal 2013 to $215.9 billion in fiscal 2026. She previously held long-term finance roles at Cisco, Microsoft (as finance leader for the Server and Tools division) and Texas Instruments, and has long served as the company’s representative to Wall Street.
Huang’s shareholding structure is primarily trust-based (jointly controlled with his wife Lori Huang), with economic interests and voting rights spread across multiple entities, meaning he cannot single-handedly decide the board or major transactions. The single-class common stock structure means his influence has shifted from a management position to the shareholder level only, unlike dual-class founders in some technology companies.
Trump’s public naming of Tim Cook came after Cook had just stepped down as Apple CEO and become executive chairman. Cook and Huang have both maintained close ties with Trump and previously took part together in activities related to China. But Nvidia’s board has clearly launched a formal search, and the interim CEO is the internal finance chief, so outside name-dropping has no decision-making force.
This transition moves the company from a highly personalized founder-driven model toward more institutionalized governance and finance-led management. Market attention is shifting from Huang’s personal relationships and lobbying ability to whether Kress can maintain customer commitments, the product roadmap and the pace of capital allocation, and whether a permanent CEO will alter the existing path on regulation, exports and the ecosystem. The indicators to watch are next quarter’s guidance and changes in customer concentration.
ABAB News · Laws of cognition
After a founder leaves, control depends on the equity structure and the board, not personal prestige.
External naming can create buzz, but it cannot replace the company’s established succession process.