NVIDIA Names Colette Kress Interim CEO After Huang Resigns

By Olivia Hart

NVIDIA’s board appointed Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress interim CEO on November 11, 2026, after accepting Jensen Huang’s resignation as president, chief executive officer and director. NVIDIA said Huang’s resignation took effect immediately.

The company announced the changes on November 12. Its Form 8-K records the board’s acceptance of Huang’s resignation and the two leadership appointments on November 11.

Who is running NVIDIA now?

Kress, 59, will serve as interim CEO while remaining executive vice president and CFO until the board names a permanent successor. The search will consider both internal and external candidates.

Harvey Jones, 73, became chair, giving a long-serving director formal responsibility for board leadership during the transition. NVIDIA said the structure separates interim executive management under Kress from board leadership under Jones.

The announcement did not explain why Huang resigned, whether he would remain with NVIDIA in another capacity, or when a permanent CEO would be selected. That leaves the immediate operating arrangement clear but the reasons for the change and the end date for Kress’s dual role unclear.

Takeaway: NVIDIA has installed an interim CEO and a chair, but has not disclosed the cause of Huang’s departure or a deadline for the permanent search.

What experience supports the appointments?

According to NVIDIA, Kress joined the company in September 2013 and has served as executive vice president and CFO since then, a tenure of more than 13 years. Before NVIDIA, she spent nearly 25 years in finance roles at technology companies including Cisco and Microsoft; the company said she led its finance organization and played a key role in NVIDIA’s growth and evolution.

Jones has served on NVIDIA’s board since 1993 and has served as managing partner of Square Wave Ventures, a private family office, since 2004. NVIDIA described him as its “first-ever chair” and as an entrepreneur, technology executive and venture investor with more than 30 years of experience, including service as CEO and executive chairman of Synopsys.

The appointments draw on established institutional knowledge rather than introduce an unknown executive into the top job. The counterpoint is that the announcement supplies no broader succession plan or specific benchmarks for how long the interim structure is intended to last.

Takeaway: Both appointees bring long tenure, but experience alone does not explain why NVIDIA needs an interim CEO now.

What does the continuity promise cover?

Jones said the board expects operations, customer commitments and the product roadmap to continue without interruption. The board’s confidence rests on Kress’s understanding of NVIDIA’s business, customers, operations and financial position, and on an experienced leadership team that has helped execute the company’s strategy and advance its technology roadmap.

Kress said NVIDIA’s strength comes from its people and credited Huang with building the foundation of the company over 33 years. “We will continue advancing the work that has made NVIDIA a leader in accelerated computing and AI, and execute on the opportunities ahead. Our focus remains on serving our customers, partners, developers and shareholders,” she said.

Those commitments align the succession with execution, spanning management, customers and product development. Yet the announcement offered no quantitative operating targets, roadmap milestones or transition timetable with which to test the promise; continuity was asserted rather than demonstrated.

Takeaway: The board has framed succession as an execution issue, not a strategic reset, though no measurable milestones support that claim.

When does NVIDIA face its next test?

NVIDIA said it will report third-quarter fiscal 2027 results on November 17, 2026, at approximately 1:20 p.m. Pacific Time. Its earnings call will follow at 2 p.m., both on the previously scheduled timetable, five days after the leadership announcement.

That release and call will be the first scheduled financial checkpoint after the change. The immediate test is whether NVIDIA can maintain operational and product continuity while Kress holds both the interim CEO and CFO roles and the permanent-CEO search remains open.

Keeping the release and call on schedule avoids a management-related timing change, but it does not fill the permanent-leadership gap. The results will provide the first company-scheduled opportunity to assess performance after the transfer, while the board has yet to set a date for naming a permanent chief.

Takeaway: The November 17 results will test the continuity claim while NVIDIA’s permanent leadership remains unsettled.