Jensen Huang resigned as chief executive of Nvidia on Friday morning, following reports of affairs, including one with an alleged Chinese spy. The company is being led by its chief financial officer on an interim basis while it looks for a permanent replacement.
President Donald Trump wasted little time offering his own pick for the job. Shortly after the resignation was announced, Trump posted on Truth Social that Huang 'has done a fantastic job' and that 'there is only one man to take his place,' identifying that man as 'TIM COOK of Apple.' 'A Legend replaces a Legend!' he added.
Trump repeated the pitch in a new episode of Stephen A. Smith's Straight Shooter podcast published Friday, describing Cook as someone who 'just sort of semi-retired from Apple' and who has 'done one of the greatest jobs in the history of business.'
The president went further, arguing that Apple 'would never be what it is today' had Steve Jobs still been around. He credited Cook with taking the brilliant ideas and designs of Jobs and others and turning them into 'one of the great companies of the world in a fairly short period.' 'I think Tim Cook would be a great candidate to run Nvidia,' Trump said.
Cook stepped down as Apple's CEO on September 1 and moved into an executive chairman role. He is well-known for his ongoing relationship with Trump, which included gifting the president a 24k gold and glass statue last year. After Cook announced his transition plan earlier this year, Trump posted a story about having the head of Apple calling to 'kiss my ass.'
Neither Apple nor Nvidia immediately responded to requests for comment.
Trump also addressed Huang's departure during the podcast, saying he spoke with the outgoing CEO on Thursday and that Huang is 'going through hell.' Asked whether Huang should have stepped down, Trump said the answer hinges on the central allegation: 'the big thing is, was the woman a spy, and I don't know if that's been determined yet, but if the woman was a spy, yes, if the woman was not a spy, perhaps it would be different.'
Trump added that he expects Huang to recover. 'Somehow, he'll end up on his feet,' he said. 'I know him, I know him pretty well. I always thought of him as a fine man.' According to Trump, Huang called him and said what he feels most badly about is what he has done to his wife and family.
Trump described Huang as a 'tremendous talent.' Other tech leaders have also publicly voiced support for Huang since his resignation.
