Nvidia is done with Jensen Huang. The fallout in Washington is just beginning
Jensen Huang resigned as Nvidia chief executive on Thursday, but lawmakers in Washington are just getting started, with subpoenas threatened and testimony demanded over the alleged China chip affair.
Out at Nvidia, summoned to Washington
Jensen Huang resigned as chief executive of Nvidia on Thursday, November 12, after reports of an affair with Alice Huang, an executive at the Singaporean technology company Megaspeed whom U.S. authorities suspect of spying for China. Lawmakers are now preparing investigations into whether the affair damaged U.S. artificial intelligence leadership and national security.
Huang co-founded Nvidia and led the company for 33 years. Republicans have 6 weeks left controlling both chambers of Congress, and their leaders moved within hours of the resignation. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott summoned Huang and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to testify in December, and said he would consider a subpoena if Huang does not appear voluntarily. In January, Democrats take control of both chambers and will lead the oversight that follows.
Two tracks: the Senate and the House
Scott's letters went out on Thursday, November 12. Lutnick agreed later that night to appear voluntarily before the Banking Committee, a Commerce Department spokesperson said. Scott wrote to Huang: "Recent reports raise serious concerns about our national security and the protection of sensitive U.S. technology." He added: "The American people deserve answers."
The chairs of 3 House committees — Foreign Affairs, Intelligence and the Select Committee on China — wrote to Huang and Nvidia general counsel Tim Teter requiring closed-door transcribed interviews on December 1 and December 2, respectively, or subpoenas to compel them. They also asked Commerce Under Secretary Jeffrey Kessler, who leads the Bureau of Industry and Security, to testify at a December 3 hearing. House Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast said Huang had agreed to appear in the coming weeks, under oath and transcribed, and that he expected it within about a week, before Thanksgiving. The House chairs gave Huang and Teter until 8 p.m. ET Friday to respond.
- Huang's tenure leading Nvidia33 years, co-founder and chief executive
- Republican control of Congress left6 weeks in both chambers
- House deadline to respond8 p.m. ET Friday
- Senate Banking testimonyDecember, Huang and Lutnick summoned
- House interviewsDecember 1 for Huang, December 2 for Teter
A stunning fall from grace
The calls for investigation landed the day Huang resigned, a sharp turn for a chief executive who had been one of the most effective voices for the AI industry in Washington. A senior Democratic staff member who attended private meetings with Huang called him the "TED Talk guy" and a "happy warrior" for AI, and said he stayed longer than scheduled to answer lawmakers' questions. The same aide said Huang did not aggressively push against export controls in those meetings, though he has repeatedly resisted them in public.
Others in Congress are looking beyond Huang. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chris Coons wrote on Wednesday to Lutnick, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, telling them to preserve all documents and communications about Nvidia's exports of advanced AI chips to China. China has denied that Alice Huang is a spy, and Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Thursday that the Justice Department has not yet reached a conclusion on whether she is. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said: "Congress must demand answers from Mr. Huang and others at Nvidia about how they may have put U.S. national security at risk." Senator John Fetterman summed up the mood in Washington: "It's just sad all around."
