Colette Kress takes charge after Jensen Huang's exit. (Img: NVIDIA)
New Delhi: As Jensen Huang steps down as Nvidia's president and CEO with immediate effect, Nvidia has appointed the company's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Colette Kress, as interim chief executive officer.
Kress, who joined Nvidia in September 2013, will now hold both positions until the company identifies a permanent successor. Nvidia's board has begun the search process and will consider candidates from within and outside the organisation.
Kress has been Nvidia's Executive Vice President and CFO for more than 13 years. During this period, she has overseen the company's finance operations and played an important role in its expansion and transformation into one of the world's most valuable technology companies.
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Before joining Nvidia, Kress spent nearly 25 years working in finance roles at major technology companies, including Cisco and Microsoft.
Her experience across the technology sector and long association with Nvidia give her an in-depth understanding of the company's financial position, business operations and relationships with customers.
As interim CEO, she will be responsible for steering the company through a significant leadership transition while continuing to oversee its finance division.
Nvidia's board has backed Kress's appointment, highlighting her understanding of the company's business and her contribution to its growth.
Harvey C. Jones, who has been appointed as the board's first-ever chair, said Kress had played an important role in guiding the company through a period of significant expansion.
“Colette has helped lead NVIDIA through a period of extraordinary growth and has a deep understanding of our business, customers, operations and financial position,” Jones said.
He also expressed confidence in the existing leadership team, adding, “The Board has full confidence in Colette and the leadership team, and we expect the company’s operations, customer commitments and product roadmap to continue without interruption.”
Jones is an entrepreneur, technology executive and venture investor with more than three decades of experience. He previously served as CEO and Executive Chairman of Synopsys.
In her first statement following the appointment, Kress acknowledged Huang's contribution to building Nvidia over the past 33 years and said the company would continue pursuing its ambitions in artificial intelligence and accelerated computing.
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“NVIDIA’s strength has always come from its people, and together with our leadership team, I am committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years,” she said.
Outlining her priorities, Kress added, “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.”
Huang's resignation marks a major turning point for Nvidia, which he co-founded and led for more than three decades. The company said its board would consider both internal and external candidates while searching for a permanent CEO.
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Despite the leadership change, Nvidia has indicated that its business operations and product roadmap will continue as planned.
The company is also scheduled to announce its third-quarter fiscal 2027 financial results on November 17 at approximately 2:50 am IST, followed by an earnings call at 3:30 am IST.
