US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called for a “dramatic shakeup” of Nvidia’s leadership on 15 November and suggested that the chipmaker look outside the company for a successor to former chief executive Jensen Huang, Bloomberg reported. Bessent made the remarks on Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures, following Huang’s departure and accusations that Nvidia facilitated sales of advanced AI chips to Chinese entities. His intervention put a cabinet secretary’s preference into Nvidia’s search for a new chief executive.
Key points
- Bessent urged Nvidia to consider leadership from outside the company after Huang’s departure.
- On 13 November, Bessent blamed Commerce for the handling of proposed export controls involving Megaspeed.
- Nvidia’s board has approached Arm chief executive Rene Haas in its search for Huang’s successor.
Bessent enters Nvidia’s succession debate
Bessent’s remarks concerned a decision for Nvidia’s board: where to find its next leader. Bloomberg reported that he urged the company to seek someone beyond its existing management after a series of accusations concerning advanced chip sales to Chinese entities. That is a different intervention from his criticism of an export-control decision two days earlier. In one, Bessent pressed a company over its leadership. In the other, he identified the government department he said held authority over a proposed restriction.
Huang resigned on 12 November after news of a relationship with Alice Huang, a former executive of Singapore-based Megaspeed International, The Washington Sun reported. The publication also reported that US intelligence suspects Alice Huang of spying for China. Megaspeed had been accused of illicitly shipping advanced Nvidia chips into China. It said in December that there was “no evidence” of such exports and said on 12 November that it took compliance with US export-control law “extremely seriously”.
Nvidia chief financial officer Colette Kress is serving as interim chief executive, Fortune reported. The company’s board has also approached Arm chief executive Rene Haas in its search for Huang’s successor, AI Affairs previously reported. Bessent’s preference for an outsider therefore comes amid a succession process in which the board has already looked beyond Nvidia.
Commerce held the Megaspeed decision
On 13 November, Bessent said on CNBC that Treasury, State, Defense and the US Trade Representative had favoured adding Megaspeed to an export-control list for months. He said the Commerce Department was responsible for the matter. “I am frustrated when President Trump made it very clear China should not receive any Nvidia chips above H100s,” Bessent said. Of Commerce, he said it “has the pen, and you will have to ask them about their internal processes”.
That distinction matters to the companies subject to export controls. Bessent described support for a proposed listing across four parts of the administration, while assigning the decision to Commerce. AI Affairs previously reported his account of Commerce’s authority over the proposed Megaspeed curbs. His comments on 15 November went further in a different direction, asking Nvidia itself to change how it fills its leadership vacancy.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has faced scrutiny over his reportedly close relationship with Huang, The Washington Sun reported. NBC News reported that tensions between Bessent and Lutnick became public on 13 November when Bessent blamed Commerce for failing to keep advanced AI chips from reaching China. Lutnick has agreed to testify before Congress, NBC News reported.
Nvidia faces competing calls over Huang
The call for outside leadership lands alongside demands pulling Nvidia’s board towards its former chief executive. Thousands of Nvidia employees have signed a petition seeking Huang’s reinstatement, AI Affairs previously reported. Investors with a $2.1 billion stake have separately urged the board to consider his return. Bessent’s stated preference puts a senior administration official on the other side of that choice.
The export-control dispute also extends beyond the cabinet. Congress has sought answers from the Bureau of Industry and Security about oversight of Nvidia chip exports to China, AI Affairs previously reported. Bessent’s account places the proposed Megaspeed listing within that same area of Commerce’s responsibility, while his latest remarks address the company’s leadership rather than a government restriction.
