Washington, Nov 13:
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is facing renewed scrutiny over allegations of personal relationships within the company, with five former or current employees claiming that he had an extramarital relationship with a senior executive reporting to him.
According to the individuals, who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the matter, the relationship involved Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s Vice-President of Healthcare. The allegations, reported by The New York Times, have not previously been made public.
Huang, 63, and Powell, 48, are both married to other people. Two individuals familiar with the matter said the pair were seen displaying affection towards each other at a hotel in San Jose, California, during Nvidia’s annual technology conference in March.
The alleged relationship has raised questions about compliance with the company’s internal conduct policies. Nvidia’s code of conduct advises employees to avoid circumstances that could create conflicts of interest, including personal relationships. The company also states that allegations of misconduct are investigated promptly.
Many corporations have specific policies governing romantic relationships between managers and employees reporting to them.
Huang’s personal life has already attracted attention following allegations involving a Chinese executive identified by US intelligence officials as an intelligence asset working for Beijing.
Last month, The New York Times reported that the executive, known as Alice Huang, had been identified by American officials as a Chinese intelligence operative.
Huang subsequently acknowledged having an affair with her. Nvidia’s board initiated an investigation into the matter this month, appointing the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to lead the inquiry.
Meanwhile, Republican leaders of three influential committees in the US House of Representatives have requested a closed-door briefing from Huang concerning his interactions with Alice Huang.
China has rejected the espionage allegations, while Alice Huang has not responded to requests for comment.
When contacted by telephone on Wednesday and questioned about his alleged relationship with Powell, Jensen Huang declined to discuss the matter and ended the call.
Nvidia did not issue a statement, while Powell had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication. The company’s shares fell approximately 8 per cent in after-hours trading.
The five individuals said Huang’s alleged relationship with Powell had been discussed internally at Nvidia. Powell joined the company in 2008 and currently leads its healthcare division. Her responsibilities include initiatives aimed at applying Nvidia’s chip technology to higher education and healthcare, particularly in the development of medical imaging systems.
She progressed through the organisation over the years. According to her LinkedIn profile, she became Senior Director of AI Business Development in 2016 before being elevated to Vice-President of Healthcare by late 2017.
In her executive role, Powell regularly represents Nvidia at international technology conferences and speaks about the company’s work in healthcare applications of artificial intelligence.
At the GTC developer conference held in San Jose in March, she delivered a presentation on the potential of AI to accelerate advances in healthcare and biological research. The presentation also featured cartoon illustrations of Huang.
The reported incident involving Huang and Powell allegedly occurred at a hotel near the conference venue, where Nvidia executives had gathered for meetings.
Three individuals familiar with the episode said a bystander recorded the interaction on a mobile phone.
According to two people who worked at the company, Huang and Powell were seen behaving affectionately at the hotel. The individuals further alleged that Huang’s security personnel noticed the person recording the interaction and subsequently took the individual aside.
The security team then reportedly requested that the bystander sign a non-disclosure agreement. The allegations add another dimension to the scrutiny surrounding Nvidia’s leadership, particularly as the company’s board investigates Huang’s previously acknowledged relationship with the Chinese executive.