Elon Musk said it would be "an honor" to hire Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang, who is facing scrutiny over an acknowledged affair and reports that the company's board could consider removing him. Musk, the founder of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla, made the comment in an exchange on X late Wednesday in the United States.
The exchange began when financial blog Zerohedge posted, "Elon please hire Jensen." Musk responded, "That would be an honor." His reply came amid reporting about Huang's position at Nvidia, including a Wall Street Journal report that directors were preparing to meet as soon as Wednesday to discuss the chief executive's future with the company.
The developments also followed a New York Times report that Huang had an extramarital relationship with another Nvidia executive. Nvidia shares fell more than 8% in after-hours trading as the reports emerged, putting the company's stock decline alongside the growing scrutiny of its leader.
Huang and Nvidia have been the subject of headlines since the weekend, when the chief executive acknowledged an affair with business executive Alice Huang. According to the source reporting, U.S. intelligence identified her as having been recruited by China's Ministry of State Security.
Alice Huang is also known by the Chinese name Huang Le. The New York Times, citing people briefed on the intelligence, reported that she had been recruited to collect information about Jensen Huang. That account added an intelligence dimension to the reporting about the Nvidia chief's personal relationship.
On his first day back in the office following the revelations, Huang tried to convey a sense that business was continuing as usual. Meanwhile, several members of Congress have called for him to leave his position, with lawmakers from both parties among those seeking his resignation.
Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican who serves on the Senate Banking Committee, repeated his call for Huang to step down on Wednesday. "As a matter of his own conscience, he should resign," Cramer told CNBC.
Others calling for Huang's departure include Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, a Virginia Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, and Rep. Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican who is retiring from Congress.
