According to Reuters on Friday, Huang described his relationship with Alice Huang, a former senior executive at Singapore-based Nvidia customer Megaspeed International, as routine business interactions in messages to company leaders last month.
The explanations were given to senior officials, including Nvidia's general counsel Tim Teter and chief marketing officer Alison Wagonfeld, according to two people familiar with the matter and internal correspondence reviewed by Reuters.
Huang reportedly offered similar explanations in 2025 after media inquiries drew attention to his meetings with Alice Huang and her company's business dealings with Nvidia.
However, Huang acknowledged being unfaithful to his wife in a public apology on Sunday, saying he had disappointed his family and the company.
He subsequently resigned as Nvidia's CEO on Thursday amid growing scrutiny of his personal relationships and concerns over potential national security implications.
Reuters reported that Huang had also discussed possible legal action against The New York Times after the newspaper published an article in October 2025 examining his public meetings with Alice Huang.
Neither Huang nor Nvidia ultimately filed a lawsuit.
The exact timing of their intimate relationship remains unclear, although photographs verified by Reuters showed the two together in several countries dating back to December 2023.
The controversy has intensified amid reports that U.S. authorities suspected Alice Huang of gathering intelligence for China.
Beijing has denied the espionage allegations, which Reuters said it had not independently verified.
Huang previously told Bloomberg that the U.S. government had not informed him of any suspicions involving Alice Huang.
Nvidia's independent board members on Tuesday appointed law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to conduct an investigation into the allegations surrounding Huang.
The scandal has also weighed heavily on Nvidia's market value. Shares have fallen more than 30 percent from their Oct. 6 closing peak, wiping out more than $1.8 trillion in market capitalization, according to Reuters.
The developments mark a dramatic reversal for Huang, who helped build Nvidia into a dominant supplier of advanced chips powering the global artificial intelligence boom.
Kim Hee-su
Kim Hee-su is a bilingual reporter at AJU Press, covering defense and foreign affairs. Before joining AJP in 2025, she worked at The Korea Times, where she wrote interview stories, including a profile of North Korean defector Kim Gum-hyok, and produced digital content. She also previously worked as a researcher for KBS News 9’s International News Department, supporting correspondents in 10 countries around the world. She graduated from the University of Toronto in Canada with a double major in Book and Media Studies and East Asian Studies.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.
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Trump Likely to Avoid Mentioning Jensen Huang's Alleged China Spy Ties in Xi Meeting
President Donald Trump is expected to refrain from discussing allegations involving Jensen Huang, the former CEO of NVIDIA, during his upcoming summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.According to a report by Yonhap News on November 14, a U.S. government official told the Financial Times that "President Trump is not expected to raise the Alice Huang issue."Alice Huang, a former executive at MegaSpeed, a Singaporean company that was a client of NVIDIA, has been implicated in an affair with Jensen Huang. U.S. intelligence agencies suspect that Alice Huang may have been recruited as a spy by Chinese intelligence.There are also allegations that MegaSpeed circumvented U.S. export control regulations to ship NVIDIA semiconductors to China. Reports indicate that the U.S. Department of Commerce delayed the process of adding MegaSpeed to its list of companies subject to export controls, raising questions about the accountability of Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.However, U.S. officials maintain that the NVIDIA-related allegations are a separate matter from the U.S.-China summit.Another U.S. official stated, "The NVIDIA situation should not affect this visit," adding that issues related to U.S. export controls will not be on the negotiation table during discussions with China.The official explained that export controls are determined through interagency consultations and that there will be no discussions on related matters during the trip to China.This stance underscores the Trump administration's intention not to use semiconductor export controls as leverage in negotiations with China while also seeking to avoid any burden from the allegations against Jensen Huang during the summit.President Trump is scheduled to visit China from November 17 to 19 to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen. He is expected to hold a bilateral meeting with President Xi on November 19, which will also include the first-ever trilateral summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.* This article has been translated by AI.
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The Cultural Significance of Jensen Huang's Leather Jacket
A black leather jacket has become a topic of discussion among the world's intellectuals. Once a symbol of innovation, challenge, freedom, and success, it has now turned into a satire of human desire, power, vanity, and downfall.The owner of the jacket is Jensen Huang, who founded NVIDIA in 1993 and has grown it into the world's leading AI semiconductor company over the past 33 years. When he took the stage wearing the black leather jacket, thousands of audience members cheered, and his words could sway massive funds in the global financial markets.However, in November 2026, the situation changed.Jensen Huang stepped down as CEO of NVIDIA amid reports of controversies surrounding his personal life and allegations of connections with a businessman linked to Chinese intelligence agencies. The company appointed Colette Kress as interim CEO and Harvey C. Jones as chairman of the board, initiating the search for a new CEO.This marked the exit of a figure who symbolized the global AI industry.Interestingly, the global media's reaction was notable.Anand Giridharadas, a writer for The New York Times, penned a satirical column titled 'Jensen Huang Betrayed the Leather Jacket Community.' The Guardian analyzed the fate of Huang's black leather jacket, which had become a punchline, drawing parallels to Marlon Brando's iconic style.Intellectuals around the world read the crisis of a massive semiconductor empire through a single leather jacket.In a way, it is a humorous story. Yet, within that satire lies a sharp question that pierces the essence of contemporary capitalist civilization.Why do humans strive to appear special? Why does power elevate one person to the status of an idol? And why is a person who has become powerful enough to dominate the world unable to govern their own heart?Following these questions leads to a convergence of Western Greek tragedies and Eastern texts like the I Ching, Tao Te Ching, and Cheonbu-gyeong.In that space, there exists humanity, culture, and nature.The Cultural History of Leather Jackets from Marlon Brando to Jensen HuangA leather jacket is not just an article of clothing. In 20th-century popular culture, it became a symbol of rebellion, freedom, youth, and independence.Marlon Brando's portrayal in the 1953 film 'The Wild One,' where he rides a motorcycle in a black leather jacket, became legendary in American youth culture. James Dean symbolized youthful anxiety and freedom, while David Bowie transformed the leather jacket into a new sensibility in music and art.The image of the leather jacket created by Hollywood and rock music was a declaration of nonconformity.Jensen Huang brought that symbolism to Silicon Valley.Just as Steve Jobs had his black turtleneck, Huang had his black leather jacket. While Jobs' attire symbolized simplicity and focus, Huang's outfit combined the images of a rebellious engineer and a rock star on stage.He was not a traditional businessman in a tie but appeared as a pioneer of technological civilization, as if he had come to invent a new world.According to The Guardian, he claimed to own dozens of leather jackets, with one Tom Ford jacket selling for an astonishing $960,000 at a charity auction.This price cannot be explained solely by the materials or design of the jacket.People were not just buying a leather jacket; they were purchasing a piece of the success myth surrounding Jensen Huang.This is the symbolic economy of modern capitalism. Products are not merely items; they sell meaning, and brands are not just names; they sell people's dreams.The problem arises when symbols become too powerful.When a company's brand becomes entirely intertwined with an individual's appearance, behavior, speech, and attire, a personal crisis becomes a corporate crisis.The leather jacket was the most effective advertisement for NVIDIA's success, but it also became a conduit for transmitting the founder's personal risks to the entire company.The jacket itself did not change. What changed was the world's perception of it.$9,000 Armor: What Was It Protecting?Some media outlets reported that the high-end leather jacket worn by Jensen Huang was priced at $9,000.However, the important aspect of this incident is not the price of the jacket.The question is what the jacket was concealing.The leather jacket served as a kind of armor for him. 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He has since invested vast resources into charitable activities aimed at addressing global health, education, and poverty issues.However, his personal life and past relationships have also become subjects of social controversy.His technological achievements and philanthropic efforts deserve recognition. At the same time, the private judgments and responsibilities of individuals with public influence must undergo legitimate scrutiny.Achievements do not grant moral immunity.Donald Trump presents a different dimension of this issue. Trump transitioned from businessman to political leader, positioning himself at the center of American politics based on a powerful personal brand and popular mobilization.His supporters praise his decisiveness and execution in challenging the existing order. 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NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang Caught in Alleged Honey Trap Amid AI Era
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