Colette Kress: Who is Nvidia’s new interim CEO?

No matter how bad your days are going, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang may be having a worse one. After reports of his second affair, the board of the tech giant said on Thursday that Jensen Huang has resigned and that CFO Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO.

The board meeting was held after reports that Huang had a relationship with Nvidia executive Kimberly Powell. Jensen Huang was already under scrutiny after reports of an affair with a different woman, Alice Huang, who was allegedly working as a spy for China, with the board hiring a law firm to investigate the matter.

As shares in the company continue to plunge, the Nvidia board announced Huang’s resignation.

Who is Colette Kress?

Colette Kress, 59, is the executive vice-president and chief financial officer (CFO) of Nvidia.

She joined the semiconductor giant in September 2013 and has served as its finance chief for more than 13 years. She is among the company’s most recognisable executives after co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang, particularly among investors.

Kress has a strong academic background in finance. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the University of Arizona and an MBA from Southern Methodist University.

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Her career has largely been centred on financial management, corporate planning, business operations and technology companies.

When Nvidia announced her appointment in 2013, Huang praised her professional experience and financial expertise.

He said: “She brings fantastic experience, excellent financial management skills and deep industry knowledge to NVIDIA.”

Jensen Huang has been accused of having another affair. with an Nvidia executive. The 63-year-old was seen getting cozy with Kimberly Powell at a hotel in California during a conference. File image/Reuters

He also described her as a valuable addition to the company as it sought to expand its leadership in visual computing, mobile technology and cloud computing.

How Kress became indispensable to the chipmaker

Kress built her career across some of the biggest names in the American technology industry before joining Nvidia. She began her professional journey at Texas Instruments, where she spent eight years in various finance positions.

She subsequently joined Microsoft in 1997 and spent 13 years there, taking on several corporate finance and planning roles.

One of her significant assignments at Microsoft was serving as CFO of its Server and Tools division for four years, beginning in 2006. In this position, she was responsible for financial strategy, planning, reporting and business development.

In 2010, Kress moved to Cisco Systems, where she served as senior vice-president and CFO of its Business Technology and Operations Finance organisation for three years.

Why Nvidia’s board likely favoured Kress

Kress emerged as a possible choice because she offers continuity at a time of uncertainty surrounding Nvidia’s leadership.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is among the longest-serving CEOs in the US. He has overseen the transformation of Nvidia into one of the most valuable companies ever. File image/Reuters

She has been with the company for more than a decade, understands its financial structure and has extensive experience managing large technology businesses. Her familiarity with investors could help maintain confidence during a leadership transition.

Bloomberg reported that her strongest advantage is her understanding of Nvidia’s financial operations and corporate structure.

She has managed the company’s finances during its extraordinary expansion in the AI market and has experience handling financial strategy at Microsoft and Cisco.

But Kress also faces a significant limitation.

She comes from a finance background rather than an engineering or semiconductor research background. Huang’s leadership has been closely associated with his technical expertise, understanding of chip architecture and ability to anticipate technological shifts.

The Week reported that her lack of an engineering background could make her less suitable for the permanent leadership of an advanced AI semiconductor company.

There is also a wider governance challenge.

Nvidia has been built around Huang’s leadership since he co-founded the company in 1993.

Who else was in the running?

Apart from Kress, other names were also being discussed for the role, including internal Nvidia executives, leaders of competing semiconductor companies and executives from major technology companies.

The prominent were are:

Ian Buck: Nvidia’s vice president overseeing hyperscale and high-performance computing, Buck is considered one of the strongest internal contenders. He joined Nvidia in 2004 and played a key role in developing CUDA, the software platform that allows developers to use Nvidia’s graphics processors for general-purpose computing and AI applications. He oversees products serving major data centre and cloud customers, including Microsoft, Google and Amazon.

If the Nvidia board did ask Jensen Huang to leave, his daughter Madison Huang, who currently serves as senior director of product marketing at the firm, could be considered. File image/Reuters

Jay Puri: The Indian-origin former Nvidia executive vice-president of worldwide field operations oversaw global sales, business development, strategic partnerships and customer relationships. He joined Nvidia in 2005 and became executive vice-president of worldwide field operations in 2009.

Bill Dally: Nvidia’s chief scientist and senior vice-president of research, Dally joined the company in 2009 after serving as chairman of Stanford University’s computer science department. He oversees research involving computer architecture, artificial intelligence and advanced computing technologies.

Chris Malachowsky: One of Nvidia’s co-founders alongside Jensen Huang and Curtis Priem in 1993, Malachowsky currently serves as an Nvidia Fellow and member of the executive staff. He has previously led engineering, operations and research functions.

The Associated Press identified him among the figures attracting attention in succession discussions.

Rene Haas: The chief executive of Arm Holdings is another potential external candidate. Haas previously worked at Nvidia and now leads a major chip-design company with close business ties to it. He has experience managing a large network of customers and technology partners.

Moreover, not just outsiders, people from Haung’s family are also in the line.

Madison Huang: Jensen Huang’s daughter and a senior director of product marketing for physical AI at Nvidia, Madison has also entered succession speculation.

Her brother Spencer Huang also works at Nvidia in robotics product management, while her husband Nico Caprez is a vice president of global AI infrastructure growth.

With input from agencies