Elon Musk has backed calls for Jensen Huang to return as Nvidia’s chief executive, adding his support to a reinstatement push a day after the chipmaker announced its co-founder’s resignation.
Musk said on X on Friday, November 13, that he was signing a petition supporting Huang’s return, according to The Washington Post. It was not immediately clear which petition he meant or whether it was connected to an internal effort at Nvidia.
“A petition is underway to reinstate Jensen and I’m signing it too,” Musk wrote.
Employee support follows Huang’s departure
The Post, citing Wired, reported that an internal call for Huang’s return had attracted more than 1,600 comments, most supporting his reinstatement. That figure represents comments, not a verified count of petition signatures or individual employees demanding his return.
Musk had also responded positively to a suggestion that he hire Huang, writing that doing so “would be an honor,” the Post reported. Neither statement amounted to an announcement that Huang would join one of Musk’s companies or return to Nvidia.
Colette Kress takes interim leadership
Nvidia announced Huang’s resignation on Thursday, November 12, effective immediately. Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress was appointed interim chief executive, according to The Associated Press.
Huang’s departure followed scrutiny of his extramarital relationships, including one with a businesswoman whom U.S. intelligence suspects of passing information to Beijing, an allegation China has denied, AP reported. That allegation is distinct from Huang’s admission of infidelity and is not an established finding that national security or Nvidia’s secrets were compromised.
Reuters reported on November 8 that Nvidia’s board had begun an independent investigation into whether Huang had been targeted by a foreign intelligence effort. At that time, the company said its board had no reason to believe that US national security or Nvidia’s secrets were compromised.
Musk’s intervention adds a prominent technology executive’s voice to the calls for Huang’s return. The reports cited here do not announce a reversal of Nvidia’s leadership decision.
