# What Happens When a Charismatic Tech Founder Is Shown the Door?

> Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang steps down amid scandal, lessons from Apple, Twitter, and Uber.
- Title: What Happens When a Charismatic Tech Founder Is Shown the…
- Summary: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang steps down amid scandal, lessons from Apple, Twitter, and Uber.
- Keywords: jensen huang, nvidia, colette kress, interim ceo, extramarital affair, chinese spy, ai company, tech founder, leadership vacuum, apple, twitter, uber
- Source: Inc — https://inc.com/chloe-aiello/what-happens-when-a-charismatic-tech-founder-is-shown-the-door-lessons-from-apple-twitter-and-uber/91435945
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: jensen huang, nvidia, colette kress, interim ceo, extramarital affair, chinese spy, ai company, tech founder, leadership vacuum, apple, twitter, uber
## Jensen Huang Steps Down
Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang stepped down on Thursday morning after reports he had an extramarital affair with a direct report at his company.

> Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang stepped down on Thursday morning.
## Scandal Details
Huang confirmed and apologized for an affair with Alice Huang, whom U.S. authorities believe is a Chinese spy.

> Huang confirmed and apologized for the other affair that he had with a woman, Alice Huang, whom U.S. authorities believe is a Chinese spy.
## Leadership Vacuum
Nvidia CFO Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO, with board member Harvey Jones becoming chair.

> The leadership vacuum left by Huang will be filled by Nvidia chief financial officer Colette Kress, who will serve as interim CEO. Director Harvey Jones, a board member since 1993, will assume the role of chair.
## Apple's Leadership Lesson
Steve Jobs resigned from Apple in 1985 but returned to lead the company through its near bankruptcy to a $349 billion market cap by 2011.

> Steve Jobs resigned from Apple in 1985, but later claimed he had been fired amid disagreements with Apple’s then-CEO John Sculley. He returned about a decade later in an advisory role, before regaining control as CEO in 1997.
## AI Sector Concerns
Experts worry Nvidia may falter without Huang, especially after U.S. voters expressed distaste for AI data centers in midterm elections.

> Others speculated the shakeup could rattle already faltering confidence in the viability of the AI sector, especially after the midterm elections in which U.S. voters asserted their distaste for AI data centers and infrastructure in no uncertain terms.
## Tech Founder Pattern
Huang joins a list of charismatic tech leaders who have been pushed out of companies they founded, including Steve Jobs and Elon Musk.

> But this is hardly uncharted territory. Huang now joins a list of charismatic tech leaders who have been pushed out of the companies they founded, in some cases to eventually return.
## Company Fates Vary
The companies of ousted tech founders have had mixed outcomes, with some recovering and others failing.

> The reasons for their departures vary, as do the fates of the companies without them, but they offer valuable lessons about leadership in the fast-paced tech space.
## What Happens Next
Nvidia faces uncertainty as it navigates leadership changes and potential impacts on AI sector confidence.

> The leadership vacuum left by Huang will be filled by Nvidia chief financial officer Colette Kress, who will serve as interim CEO.
## Key takeaway

Nvidia co-founder Jensen Huang resigned after reports of an extramarital affair with a Chinese spy, leaving Colette Kress as interim CEO.