Jensen Huang's Exit Ends Nvidia's 33-Year Rise from Diner to AI Leader

Jensen Huang has resigned as CEO of Nvidia, ending a 33-year tenure that transformed the company from a graphics startup into the center of the artificial intelligence boom. His departure follows his admission of infidelity to staff on November 8, with the board accepting his resignation on November 11. CFO Colette Kress now serves as interim CEO and will present third-quarter results on November 17. Nvidia shares traded at $170.34 in premarket Friday, up 2.5% from Thursday's close of $166.19, when the company was valued at approximately $4 trillion, down 30.5% from its record close of $239.24 on October 6. Huang co-founded Nvidia in April 1993 at age 30, after working at AMD and LSI Logic. The company nearly collapsed with its first product, the NV1, but recovered with the RIVA 128 and went public in January 1999 at $12 per share, equivalent to 2.5 cents after six stock splits. Data centers now account for nearly 90% of Nvidia's revenue, up from 7% a decade earlier.