Family, insiders or a rival CEO? Meet the Nvidia contenders tipped to succeed Jensen Huang

The potential successors to Jensen Huang at Nvidia are (top row, left to right) the company insiders, CFO Colette Kress, VP Ian Buck, and VP Bryan Catanzaro, and his family (bottom row, left to right) cousin Lisa Su, son Spencer Huang, and daughter Madison Huang. — Pictures from Nvidia Blog, LinkedIn, and AMD website.

First Published: Thursday, 12 Nov 2026 2:47 PM MYT

LOS ANGELES, Nov 12 — Chip giant Nvidia’s board was reportedly meeting Wednesday to discuss the future of co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang after he dated an accused Chinese spy, according to US media.

The 63-year-old tech titan, who has led the key AI giant since it was founded in 1993, has been beleaguered with reports of multiple extramarital affairs, including with Alice Huang, a data centre executive who has been accused by US intelligence of working for China’s Ministry of State Security.

With Huang unexpectedly on the back foot, and no known plan of succession at Nvidia, the field is wide open for a variety of replacements to lead one of the key AI players should the board decide to oust Huang.

Here are some of the names being suggested most frequently as Huang’s potential successor.

Internal hire

With over 40,000 employees, Nvidia could opt to go with an in-house pick to take the helm, including one of Huang’s dozens of direct reports.

Tech publications frequently cited Nvidia’s Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as an easy choice, if for no other reason than she is already among top leadership at the chip behemoth.

Another longtime Nvidia honcho is Ian Buck, who oversees the company’s data centre clients.

He was a key mind behind the software that keeps Nvidia-designed chips in demand.

Business magazine Inc. also lists Nvidia’s vice president of applied deep learning research, Bryan Catanzaro, as a possible pick.

A family affair

Huang could also try and position a member of his own family as his replacement, with more than one option for a bloodline succession.

His daughter Madison Huang is currently the senior director of product marketing at Nvidia and is among the names most suggested by analysts.

As a marketing leader, she had a multi-year stint at luxury conglomerate LVMH.

Jensen Huang’s son Spencer Huang could also be a potential successor.

He currently works at Nvidia as the director of product management in the company’s robotics division.

Huang’s cousin, Lisa Su, could also be a viable candidate for selection — not only is she his first cousin, once removed, but she also has valuable expertise as the longtime CEO of semiconductor giant AMD.

Tech CEO swap

Su is not the only tech chief being bandied around as a possible replacement for Huang.

Rene Haas, CEO of UK chip design firm Arm, is another candidate being suggested by the tech press.

Speculation runs wide in Silicon Valley, where former Apple CEO Tim Cook – who stepped down from leading the tech giant in August after 15 years at the helm – is another person insiders say could potentially be tapped. — AFP