Jensen Huang, who resigned Thursday as CEO of powerhouse AI chipmaker Nvidia over reports that he had a relationship with a woman alleged to be a spy for the Chinese government, faces a congressional subpoena if he does not agree to testify before House lawmakers investigating the allegations.
In a letter Thursday, the Republican chairs of three House committees requested that Huang appear for a transcribed interview Dec. 1, giving him until 8 p.m. Friday to confirm his participation or face a subpoena.
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House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast, R-Fla., had earlier told MS NOW that Huang agreed to testify before Congress this month, saying his testimony would likely be an under-oath, video-recorded interview involving multiple committees before the Thanksgiving recess.
The letter, however, seeks an interview after the recess and indicates Huang has yet to formally confirm his participation.
The letter was signed by Mast, House Intelligence Committee Chair Rick Crawford, R-Ark., and House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chair John Moolenaar, R-Mich.
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“Failure to cooperate with this request will result in the House Foreign Affairs Committee issuing a subpoena to compel your testimony in a format of the committee’s choosing,” the lawmakers wrote, warning that other committees could issue separate subpoenas.
In a separate letter Thursday, the lawmakers also demanded Nvidia general counsel Tim Teter testify Dec. 2 about alleged chip smuggling and export controls, threatening a subpoena if he does not agree by Friday.
“As reports continue to come to light regarding Jensen Huang, NVIDIA, and MegaSpeed, there are clear national security concerns that need to be addressed immediately,” Mast, Moolenaar and Crawford said in a press release. “We need to know the full extent to which our national security has been put at risk.”
Huang, who founded the company, also stepped down as a member of Nvidia’s board of directors, effective immediately, the board announced. Nvidia’s chief financial officer and executive vice president, Colette Kress, will temporarily serve as CEO. The board said it will look at internal and external candidates to determine who will permanently lead one of the world’s most geopolitically influential companies.
“Nvidia is a very important company to the United States of America” Mast said. “I don’t want to see anything hurt Nvidia, but he has some very serious questions to answer.”
Huang’s departure comes after the company launched an investigation into a relationship he reportedly was having with a woman who U.S. intelligence officials are said to have determined was a Chinese asset. Subsequent reports said he had a second affair with an executive who reported to him.
On Sunday, Huang apologized in a statement to the company, saying, “I was unfaithful to my wife” and that “my actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry.” He did not say with whom he had an affair.
Nvidia shares plunged by 13% as markets opened Thursday but had regained some of its losses by midafternoon.
The incoming Democratic-controlled Congress is also preparing to investigate Huang and to what extent President Donald Trump knew about China’s alleged spying.
After Huang resigned, Trump said in a post on Truth Social that Huang has “done a fantastic job” and then floated former Apple CEO Tim Cook as a replacement.
