Asian governments react as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang departs following investigation
The departure of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang following an independent board investigation launched on November 8 has triggered widespread reassessments across Asia's technology sector. The inquiry began after reports indicated Huang was targeted by a Chinese espionage operation, alongside his admission of an affair with Alice Huang, a former executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed. While China's foreign ministry dismissed the spy allegations on November 10 as groundless, the leadership shakeup threatens more than $3 billion in Chinese AI computing projects reliant on restricted Nvidia chips. Meanwhile, Singapore confirmed Alice Huang was barred from re-entering the country following a server export probe, with inquiries into Megaspeed and six other individuals still ongoing.
Elsewhere, regional governments moved to protect their domestic roadmaps. In South Korea, where Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix supply vital memory chips, Nvidia reaffirmed its commitment to deliver 260,000 advanced GPUs and continue joint projects. In Taiwan, Economy Minister Kung Ming-shin stated the exit would not derail AI growth, while Taipei confirmed Nvidia's planned overseas headquarters remains on track. In Japan, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Masanao Ozaki noted that authorities will closely monitor developments to preserve semiconductor supply stability.
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