Nvidia case draws in Trump administration as Huang and Lutnick are expected to testify before Congress

Jensen Huang, who resigned yesterday as Nvidia’s CEO, has been called to testify before the U.S. Congress. The announcement came from a Republican senator, who said U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had also been called to testify.

Chairman Tim Scott, speaking before the House Judiciary Committee, said recent information raised serious concerns about national security and the protection of sensitive American technologies. He therefore called for Huang, Nvidia’s chairman and chief executive, and Lutnick to testify before the Senate Banking Committee.

Huang, one of the leading figures behind the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, stepped down on Tuesday from the leadership of the company he founded. His resignation followed a scandal involving extramarital relationships, including one with a woman accused of spying for China.

The board of Nvidia, the world’s largest AI chip company, announced that Huang’s departure as chairman, CEO and board member took effect immediately. The company gave no reason for the decision.

Until the board chooses a permanent leader, Nvidia Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO.

The consequences of Huang’s sudden departure extend beyond Nvidia. The company has become a major investor in Silicon Valley, using its substantial profits to build data centers for customers and support numerous startups. That role has earned it the nickname “the central bank of AI,” but has also drawn criticism that it is fueling a speculative bubble.

The market reaction was immediate. After losing about a quarter of its value in a month amid turmoil in the technology sector, Nvidia shares fell 13% at the Wall Street open. By the close, the decline had narrowed to 4.3%.

Huang’s departure could also reignite trade tensions between Beijing and Washington. He had called for AI development to be unblocked, defended open AI models, including Chinese ones, and supported easing restrictions on chip exports.

Republican Representative Brian Mast, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced that Huang had agreed to testify before Congress behind closed doors before November 26, Thanksgiving Day.

Lutnick is also implicated in the matter. According to the news website Axios, the U.S. commerce secretary blocked action three times against companies suspected of supplying Nvidia chips to China. Among them was Megaspeed, run by Alice Huang, the woman with whom Jensen Huang had an extramarital relationship and who is suspected of being a Chinese spy.

Axios also reported that U.S. intelligence agencies had briefed Lutnick on Huang’s relationship with the woman suspected of espionage. Nevertheless, according to the report, he took no steps to impose controls on chip exports, despite pressure from the administration and Trump himself.

Lutnick’s spokesperson, Kristen Eihammer, told NBC News that the commerce secretary had taken the initiative to appear voluntarily before the House Banking Committee to answer questions.