Ackman, Musk, Trump back Nvidia’s Huang amid spy probe

Some of the best-known figures in American business and politics are publicly backing Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Huang told employees he had been unfaithful to his wife, and the company's board opened an independent investigation into whether he was the "target of a foreign intelligence effort." Several of his backers added a warning. Their support depends on the matter staying a personal failing and not becoming a national security breach.

Huang wrote in a message to staff that "I was unfaithful to my wife," and said he took "full responsibility." He added, "My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry," according to The Independent. The board announced its review on Sunday, November 8. It said it had "no reason to believe" that national security or Nvidia secrets had been compromised, and Huang will stay on as CEO while the inquiry runs, the Associated Press reported.apnews.com+1

Support, with conditions

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman, founder of Pershing Square Capital Management, called Huang an "incredible human" in a post on X. He also said that if "indeed this is more than an affair, then it is obviously a real problem," Reuters reported. "I am hoping for a simple affair, not a risk to our national security," Ackman added.finance.yahoo.com

Shaun Maguire, a partner at Sequoia, wrote that Huang "did something incredibly dumb" that was "bad for America." He still argued that "Jensen is irreplaceable for America's AI leadership." Tesla CEO Elon Musk replied "I agree" under that post, according to Reuters.business-standard.com

President Donald Trump said Sunday he had not spoken to Huang about the allegations and called him a fine person. "I hope everything's fine. He's done such an incredible job," Trump said. Asked whether he should have acted on intelligence he had been briefed on, he answered, "No, I don't think so. I think he's an honorable guy. I think he probably has an excuse for it". The New York Times reported that Trump was briefed on the findings about a year ago and did not act on them.finance.yahoo.com

The spy allegations

In October, the Times reported that US officials believed Alice Huang, an executive at Megaspeed, had developed a relationship with the Nvidia CEO. Megaspeed is a Singapore-based company and an Nvidia customer, and officials consider her a Chinese intelligence asset. The two are not related. China's Foreign Ministry dismissed the allegation as "nothing but smears against China," Benzinga reported, citing Bloomberg.finance.yahoo.com+1

The pressure on Huang is growing. Nvidia shares fell about 8% in early trading Monday, adding to last week's selloff. The chairs of three House committees have asked Huang for a closed-door briefing on November 18, citing "significant national security concerns". Nvidia is also due to report earnings on November 17, where analysts expect questions about the matter.finance.yahoo.com+1