Bloomberg spoke about the last hours of Huang as head of Nvidia

In his final hours as CEO of Nvidia, Jensen Huang was unusually indifferent, said: “I don’t care [what will happen to me]” and called himself a “piece of shit”, writes Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the circumstances of his departure.

According to the agency, on the evening of November 11, Huang, who for several weeks denied accusations of adultery and tried to keep his position, stopped resisting. Usually energetic and accustomed to control the situation, the leader began to respond to everything that he “did not care.”.

Bloomberg’s interlocutors, who spoke to Huang in recent days, said that he also called himself “a piece of shit.” According to them, the former head of Nvidia claimed that he no longer cares about his own fate. His main concern was his wife, as well as his desire not to “destroy the lives” of women who appear in reports of his marital infidelity.

The agency notes that the scandal affected the work of Huang. Previously, he personally oversaw about 60 Nvidia executives and promptly responded to employee emails listing their top tasks. However, in the last days before his resignation, answers began to arrive with a delay.

The Financial Times, in turn, writes that in private conversations, Huang was depressed and openly speculated that the relationship with his wife was more important to him than retaining the post of CEO.

The FT also describes the situation within Nvidia that has developed over the years of Huang’s leadership. One source said the company was run as a "feudal system" with complex internal relationships. Another source described corporate culture as a “cult” in which the founder enjoyed almost unlimited authority. One investor described Huang as Nvidia’s “supreme deity.”.

The newspaper notes that important positions in the company are occupied by relatives of Huang. His daughter Madison works as a senior marketing director, her husband Nico Caprez also holds an influential position, and son Spencer performs leadership functions. Several current and former employees have told the FT that Madison was in fact acting as her father's chief of staff, although she officially held a different position.

According to the FT, the board of directors until the last hoped to keep Huang at the head of the company. The possibility of appointing an independent chairman of the board and developing a plan for the transfer of powers to the future head was discussed. However, new reports of alleged extramarital affairs made his resignation inevitable.

Amid the scandal, Huang will testify in the US Congress. Lawmakers are set to investigate whether his romantic relationship with Alice Huang, whom U.S. intelligence agencies suspect has ties to Chinese intelligence, could have compromised Nvidia's confidential technology.

On November 12, Nvidia announced Huang's resignation as president and CEO, as well as from the board of directors. He has led the company since its founding in 1993. Colette Kress has been appointed interim CEO, who will retain the duties of CFO. The Board of Directors has begun searching for a permanent successor among internal and external candidates. Its chairman was Harvey Jones.

The scandal began in early November after reports of Huang's alleged relationship with the head of Singapore's Megaspeed company, Alice Huang. U.S. intelligence agencies suspect her of collaborating with Chinese intelligence, though the U.S. Justice Department has not confirmed the woman is a Chinese spy. Beijing denies the accusations. Later, the NYT, citing five former and current employees of Nvidia, reported about the alleged affair of the head of the company with her vice president of health care Kimberly Powell. On November 12, Reuters, citing sources, reported on Huang’s third alleged affair with another Nvidia employee. The agency didn't disclose her name.

Amid the scandal, investors have filed a class action lawsuit against Nvidia and Huang, Reuters reported. The plaintiffs accused the company and its executive of defrauding shareholders by concealing the businessman's ties to Alice Huang.

After the announcement of his resignation on November 12, Nvidia shares at the opening of trading fell by 14.35%, to $148.8. The company’s capitalization fell below $4 trillion. According to Bloomberg, the fall in its market value exceeded $600 billion. Later, during the session, the papers played part of the losses.

Jensen Huang founded Nvidia in 1993 with Chris Malachowski and Curtis Reception and has led the company for 33 years since then.

Nvidia is the second largest company in the world by capitalization ($4.2 trillion) after Apple.