TL;DR
Nvidia named CFO Colette Kress interim CEO after Jensen Huang resigned, and appointed longtime director Harvey C. Jones as its first board chair. The board said it is selecting a search firm and has not formally engaged candidates; a reported approach to Arm CEO Rene Haas remains unverified by Reuters. Nvidia has not given a timeline for choosing a permanent CEO.
Nvidia’s board is selecting a search firm to find a permanent chief executive after founder Jensen Huang resigned, while CFO Colette Kress serves as interim CEO. The board said Friday, November 13, that it had not formally engaged any candidates, leaving the world’s leading AI-chip supplier without a public timetable for naming Huang’s successor.
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Nvidia announced the interim arrangement on November 12. Kress, the company’s chief financial officer since 2013, agreed to serve as interim CEO and will remain CFO until a permanent successor is named, according to the company’s announcement and a Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing says the board appointed her while it searches for a new CEO.
The board also appointed Harvey C. Jones as chair, a newly created role Nvidia described as its first-ever board chair. Jones has served as a director since 1993, according to the filing. The company said operations, customer commitments and its product roadmap would continue without interruption during the leadership change.
The board’s statement to CNBC on November 13 said it was “in the process of selecting a search firm for the Nvidia CEO role.” It added that the company had “not formally engaged any potential candidates.” That status means names circulating publicly have different levels of support: some are reported possibilities, while others have been suggested publicly without any disclosed board endorsement.
Leadership Beyond Jensen Huang
The succession matters because Nvidia’s leadership change comes as its chips and systems play a central role in the buildout of artificial intelligence computing. Customers, suppliers and business partners will be watching whether the transition affects the company’s execution, product plans or ability to meet commitments. Nvidia says those commitments and its roadmap continue without interruption, but that is the company’s stated position; the longer-term leadership approach has yet to be set.
Huang was closely associated with Nvidia’s technical and business direction. Reuters reported that some analysts expect a successor to move the company toward “a more institutional leadership structure.” That is an expectation attributed to analysts, not a board decision. The choice of a permanent CEO could indicate how Nvidia intends to balance continuity with a different management model as the company grows.
For customers and partners, the immediate question is operational stability; for employees, the upcoming company meeting may offer a chance to hear how the interim arrangement will work. Investors will also look for what Kress and the board say about the transition during the company’s scheduled results events. No change to the product roadmap or customer commitments has been announced in the cited material.
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From Resignation to Interim Leadership
Nvidia’s Form 8-K says the board accepted Huang’s resignation as president, CEO and director on November 11. The company announced Kress’s interim appointment and Jones’s elevation to board chair the following day. The board said the search would consider internal and external candidates, but it has not disclosed a shortlist or a process calendar.
Two names have drawn attention, though neither is an announced candidate. The Financial Times reported that Nvidia’s board approached Arm CEO Rene Haas, citing people familiar with the matter; Reuters carried the report on November 13. Arm declined to comment, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the report. The Financial Times report, as relayed by Reuters, said Haas was among several candidates and that there was no guarantee he would receive or accept an offer.
Separately, President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that “there is only one man to take his place – TIM COOK of Apple,” according to quotations published by Reuters and Fox Business. Cook is Apple’s executive chairman. The sources cited here do not show that Nvidia’s board considered or responded to Trump’s suggestion. The decision rests with Nvidia’s board.
““We are in the process of selecting a search firm for the Nvidia CEO role. We have not formally engaged any potential candidates.””
— Nvidia’s board, in a statement to CNBC on November 13
No Shortlist or Search Deadline
Nvidia has provided no public deadline for naming a permanent CEO. It has not disclosed which candidates, if any, are being considered beyond saying it has not formally engaged any potential candidates. The reported approach to Haas has not been independently verified by Reuters, and Arm declined to comment.
It is also unclear whether the board will hire an outside search firm, when that firm might be selected, or how it will weigh internal candidates against external ones. Trump’s suggestion of Cook has no stated connection to the board’s process in the sources reviewed. Kress’s interim appointment and Jones’s chairmanship are confirmed; the permanent leadership structure remains undecided.
Results and Staff Meeting Ahead
Nvidia has scheduled its third-quarter results for Tuesday, November 17, with the announcement expected at about 1:20 p.m. Pacific Time and a call at 2 p.m. Pacific, according to the source material. The results event is the next public milestone where executives may address business continuity or the search, though Nvidia has not said what it will discuss about succession.
Kress also told staff that a company meeting would take place on November 18 at 9 a.m. Pacific Time, according to her email as published by CNBC. The meeting may provide employees with more detail about the interim period, but no agenda was reported. The next confirmed step in the CEO search is the board’s selection of a search firm; the timing and eventual candidate announcement remain unknown.
Key Questions
Who is Nvidia’s interim CEO?
Colette Kress, Nvidia’s CFO, is serving as interim CEO. The company said she will remain CFO until a permanent successor is named.
Has Nvidia chosen a permanent CEO candidate?
No candidate has been publicly announced. The board told CNBC it had not formally engaged any potential candidates as of November 13, 2026.
Was Arm CEO Rene Haas approached about the job?
The Financial Times reported that Nvidia’s board approached Haas, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters said it could not independently verify the report; Arm declined to comment.
Did Nvidia consider Tim Cook for the role?
President Donald Trump publicly suggested Apple executive chairman Tim Cook in a Truth Social post. The sources cited here do not establish that Nvidia’s board considered or endorsed the suggestion.
When will Nvidia name a permanent CEO?
Nvidia has not given a timeline. The board said it was selecting a search firm, with no public deadline for completing the search.
Source: Thorsten Meyer AI
