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SEOUL\/SYDNEY: Nvidia shares fell in out-of-hours trading on Monday after an internal investigation into \u200bwhether CEO Jensen Huang had been targeted by a foreign intelligence effort put his future at the AI chipmaker under scrutiny.<\/strong><\/p>\n The internal probe followed a media report that Huang \u200chad a close relationship with a Chinese businesswoman who allegedly passed information to Beijing.<\/p>\n Huang told Nvidia\u2019s employees, opens new tab that he had been unfaithful to his wife, without disclosing details of the relationship.<\/p>\n The investigation, announced on Sunday, has put a spotlight on Huang\u2019s future given Nvidia\u2019s status as the world\u2019s most valuable chipmaker and the CEO\u2019s role as the most prolific salesman of the AI boom.<\/p>\n The fallout extended to South Korea, where Madison Huang, Huang\u2019s daughter and an Nvidia executive, cancelled a \u200bplanned visit to Seoul for an Nvidia conference that was set to begin on Monday, according to companies she had been scheduled to meet.<\/p>\n Perpetual futures trading on the Hyperliquid exchange and \u200bafter-hours shares trading on the Blue Ocean system showed Nvidia prices around $180.30 a share, down about 3.4% from Friday\u2019s Nasdaq closing price of $186.64.<\/p>\n \u201cThe market\u2019s probably \u2060telling you now this does no favours to the stock whatsoever in a time when there\u2019s a lot of conjecture as to the build out of data centres,\u201d said Chris Weston, head of research \u200bat brokerage Pepperstone in Melbourne.<\/p>\n But Weston said he did not think Huang, whom he described as the \u201cgodfather of AI\u201d, would be replaced. The New York Times reported last month that Huang had a relationship with Alice Huang, an unrelated former executive of Singapore-based company Megaspeed, who US authorities investigated and concluded was a Chinese intelligence asset.<\/p>\n Mega speed did not respond immediately to a request for comment on Monday, a public holiday in Singapore.<\/p>\n Alice Huang did not respond to the New York Times last month when it first reported her relationship with Huang, and \u200bReuters could not determine her location to seek comment on Monday.<\/p>\n ASIA PARTNERS UNAFFECTED<\/strong><\/p>\n Shares in Nvidia\u2019s key Asian chip suppliers TSMC (2330.TW), opens new tab, Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab and SK Hynix (000660.KS), opens new tab rebounded on Monday after last week\u2019s selloff of AI-related \u200bstocks. TSMC shares jumped 6.5%, while those in Samsung and SK Hynix climbed 2.9% and 4.7%, respectively.<\/p>\n Some prominent figures weighed in on Huang\u2019s admission. Billionaire investor Bill Ackman, founder of Pershing Square Capital Management, said on X that \u200cthe Nvidia \u2060CEO was an \u201cincredible human,\u201d but if \u201cindeed this is more than an affair, then it is obviously a real problem.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI am hoping for a simple affair, not a risk to our national security,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Tesla CEO Elon Musk commented \u201cI agree\u201d on a post by Sequoia partner Shaun Maguire that said Huang \u201cdid something incredibly dumb\u201d that was \u201cbad for America\u201d but that \u201cJensen is irreplaceable for America\u2019s AI leadership\u201d.<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump said on Sunday he had not spoken to Huang about the allegations, but called him a fine person. \u201cI hope everything\u2019s fine. He\u2019s done such an incredible job,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n When asked if he believed he should have acted on intelligence when he \u200bwas briefed about it, Trump said: \u201cNo, I don\u2019t \u200bthink so. I think he\u2019s an honorable guy. \u2060I think he probably has an excuse for it. You have to hear it.\u201d<\/p>\n The New York Times reported that Trump was briefed about the intelligence findings roughly a year ago and chose not to do anything with the information.<\/p>\n CANCELLED VISIT<\/strong><\/p>\n Madison Huang had initially planned to visit South Korean AI startup Rebellions and \u200bhold a question-and-answer session with Kakao Mobility. Rebellions said the events were cancelled due to \u201cunavoidable internal circumstances at Nvidia.\u201d<\/p>\n Nvidia AI Day Seoul, a two-day \u200bevent expected to draw about \u20602,000 participants to discuss physical AI, agentic AI and infrastructure, will proceed as planned, according to South Korean media. Nvidia did not respond immediately to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Analysts said a prolonged investigation or internal review could potentially delay Nvidia\u2019s investment decisions or product launches, with broader implications for the semiconductor industry.<\/p>\n Ryu Young-ho, a senior analyst at NH Investment & Securities, said Nvidia\u2019s rivals, including Advanced Micro Devices, could attract greater attention in the short \u2060term, potentially putting \u200bSamsung, which has close business ties with AMD, in the spotlight.<\/p>\n Still, he said Nvidia\u2019s products would be difficult to replace, \u200blimiting the potential impact, although shipments to China could face further delays depending on how the situation developed.<\/p>\n South Korea\u2019s deputy science minister said on Monday the government expected no disruptions to contracted deliveries of Nvidia graphics processing units despite issues currently facing the company.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cIf we genuinely thought he was going to step down \u2026 the stock would be \u200bdown \u2014 it would be an absolute bloodbath, to be honest,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n