Nvidia Retains Wachtell Lipton to Probe CEO Jensen Huang Over Espionage Allegations

Nvidia has retained law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct an independent investigation concerning co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang, following his acknowledgment of an extramarital relationship with an executive suspected of acting on behalf of Chinese intelligence. Independent directors tasked Joon H. Kim, a former acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to lead the inquiry into whether intellectual property, proprietary corporate secrets, or national security considerations were compromised. In tandem, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting its own inquiry into the matter.

The relationship centers on Alice Huang, also known as Huang Le, a former executive at Singapore-based technology firm and Nvidia customer Megaspeed, who U.S. intelligence determined had ties to Beijing's state intelligence apparatus. Following disclosure of the affair and the commencement of regulatory scrutiny, Nvidia's equity suffered sharp losses, wiping out roughly $500 billion in market value since late last week. Furthermore, shareholders filed a complaint in federal court in California alleging that the company and Huang failed to disclose risks to reputation and security.