Nvidia faces a harder founder transition than Apple did

Jensen Huang resigned from Nvidia on Thursday amid reports of extramarital affairs, including with a woman U.S. intelligence believes is a spy for China, leaving the world's most valuable company without its founder-CEO. Huang co-founded Nvidia 33 years ago and made it central to the artificial intelligence boom, but experts say his sudden departure is unique and his eventual successor faces challenges beyond typical founder transitions. CFO Colette Kress is serving as temporary CEO while the board searches for a permanent replacement. Unlike Apple's Tim Cook, who had considerable preparation before succeeding Steve Jobs, Nvidia reportedly lacks a succession plan for Huang, who had 60 direct reports. The new CEO must manage the scandal's fallout, supply chain relationships, and rising competition from AMD and hyperscalers.