Nvidia's board is meeting to decide whether to oust CEO Jensen Huang, CNBC confirmed late Wednesday. The meeting followed reports of two extramarital affairs, one with an employee and another with an alleged Chinese spy.
Shares of Nvidia fell more than 9% in post-market trading after The Wall Street Journal reported that the board was preparing to force out Huang. The New York Times reported that Huang had a romantic relationship with Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's vice president of health care. The Times said Huang and Powell were captured on camera being affectionate at a hotel in San Jose, California, in March.
Nvidia and Powell did not respond to CNBC's request for comment. Heller, the crisis PR firm Huang reportedly hired as early as last year, did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.
Days earlier, Huang admitted to an affair with Alice Huang. The Financial Times reported that U.S. intelligence officials believe she is a spy for China's Ministry of State Security, according to The New York Times. Nvidia's board has opened an independent investigation and hired the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to examine the spying allegations.
In a message to staff on Sunday, Huang wrote: "I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry."
Nvidia's stock was down 7% for the week before the after-hours drop and was on pace for its sixth straight weekly slide.