Nvidia Board Investigates Founder; Insiders Eye CFO and VP as Successors

The Nvidia board is investigating founder Jensen Huang following reports of an extramarital affair with executive Kimberly Powell, causing the stock to drop more than 14% since November. With no named successor yet confirmed by management, industry insiders are closely watching two key figures: Colette Kress and Ian Buck.

Colette Kress serves as Nvidia's chief financial officer and has been a central figure in explaining results to Wall Street for over a decade. Forbes recently ranked her among America's Richest Self-Made Women, and she is viewed by commentators as a potential interim leader should the board need one during its inquiry. Meanwhile, Ian Buck runs the company's hyperscale and high-performance computing business and was instrumental in creating CUDA software.

Insiders have identified both Kress and Buck as strong candidates to replace Huang if he were removed from his position immediately.