Nvidia's one-man problem: Jensen Huang, 60 direct reports and no No. 2

Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang has built a multibillion-dollar company that has gained immense popularity for its AI chips. However, the company has not named a second-in-command, highlighting its heavy dependence on Huang. However, this week, that choice is being tested.

Nvidia's board has opened an independent investigation after Huang admitted to an affair with Alice Huang, a Chinese executive reportedly suspected of spying on him for Beijing. President Donald Trump also revealed that the FBI is looking into the matter. The question some industry observers are seriously asking is: if Huang had to go, who would run Nvidia?

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A CEO with 60 direct reports

Nvidia has an unusual management style for a company of Nvidia's size. Reportedly, Huang has about 60 executives across engineering roles spanning GPUs, CPUs, networking and memory who report directly to him. He revealed that he does not conduct one-on-one meetings. This highlights that issues go to the entire leadership group.

Huang has described these reports as people who “could be world-class CEOs for many other companies,” and says he makes every decision in front of them. Therefore, since there is no obvious No. 2, there’s little room for mentoring a designated successor.

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Nvidia’s family factor

Jensen Huang owns about 3.6% of Nvidia, which is roughly 870 million shares. This includes family trusts and shares held by the Jen-Hsun and Lori Huang Foundation, of which his wife Lori is president.

Estimates of the foundation's holding run from about 59 million to 69 million shares.
Huang’s children work at Nvidia as well; Madison Huang joined in 2020 and is senior director of product and technical marketing for physical AI platforms. Spencer Huang works on robotics product management.

Huang’s son-in-law, Nico Caprez, is also a vice president at the company, overseeing ties with neoclouds and data-centre operators.

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Can Huang be replaced?

In terms of legality, yes. Huang can be replaced if the board makes the decision. Nvidia's own proxy warns that it is highly dependent on its longstanding executive team. Huang himself has said he does not believe in succession planning, arguing that reasoning in front of his team spreads knowledge. Furthermore, there is no public sign that the company board wants him gone.