Nvidia's board announced on Thursday that co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang resigned from his roles as president, CEO, and board member, effective immediately. The company cited reports of affairs involving Huang with an alleged Chinese spy and a direct report at Nvidia. Huang had led the chip designer for 33 years and never established a succession plan.
Nvidia CFO and Executive Vice President Colette Kress has taken over as interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor. Kress joined Nvidia in September 2013 after spending three years as SVP and CFO of Cisco's Business Technology Operations Finance organization. She previously worked at Microsoft for 13 years, including four years as CFO of the Server and Tools division. She holds a finance degree from the University of Arizona and an MBA from Southern Methodist University.
Kress, 59, maintains a limited social media presence but has been a regular on Nvidia earnings calls. Her net worth is estimated at $1.2 billion according to Forbes' list of America's Richest Self-Made Women. She initially joined Nvidia partly because her two sons endorsed the company for its role in the video game industry.
"Nvidias strength has always come from its people, and together with our leadership team, I am committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years," Kress said in a statement. "We will continue advancing the work that has made Nvidia a leader in accelerated computing and AI, and execute on the opportunities ahead."
Nvidia reports quarterly earnings on Tuesday.