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TL;DR
Nvidia CFO Colette Kress is serving as interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor to founder Jensen Huang. The board says it is still selecting a search firm and has not formally engaged candidates; reports and public suggestions about possible successors remain unconfirmed.
Nvidia’s board is still selecting a search firm to find a permanent CEO and says it has not formally engaged any candidates, leaving CFO Colette Kress to lead the company on an interim basis after founder Jensen Huang resigned. The board’s Friday statement, reported by CNBC and Reuters, also called speculation about individual candidates premature.
Nvidia’s November 12 press release and a Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission say Kress will serve as interim CEO while continuing as executive vice president and chief financial officer. She has been the company’s CFO since 2013. The filing says the board appointed her while it conducts a search; it gives no deadline for naming a successor.
The board also appointed Harvey C. Jones as chair, a role Nvidia described as its first-ever board chair. Jones has served as a director since 1993. In an employee email reported by CNBC, Jones said the board asked Kress to serve while it searches for a permanent successor, considering both internal and external candidates. He described her as “a key architect of NVIDIA’s growth and capital strategy.”
Several names have surfaced, but none is confirmed as a candidate. The Financial Times reported that the board approached Arm CEO Rene Haas, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters said it could not independently verify the report; Arm declined to comment. President Donald Trump separately wrote on Truth Social that Apple executive chairman Tim Cook was “the only man to take his place,” as quoted by Reuters and Fox Business. Nvidia’s board has not publicly endorsed that suggestion.
Nvidia CEO succession · Nov 11–18, 2026
From resignation to a search with no candidate on record
What Nvidia has confirmed, what is only reported or suggested, and the next dates.
Where the search stands (schematic)
- Resignation acceptedNov 11, per Nvidia’s 8-K
- Interim leadershipKress is interim CEO and stays CFO; Jones is the first Chair
- Search firmBeing selected, the board said on Nov 13
- CandidatesNone formally engaged, per the board; names so far are only reported or suggested
- Permanent CEONo timeline given
donein progress or reportedopen
Step by step, with the source for each
- Nov 11Nvidia, 8-K: the board accepts Huang’s resignation as President, CEO and director
- Nov 12Nvidia: Kress interim CEO and still CFO; Jones first-ever Chair; search for internal and external candidates
- Nov 12Suggested: Trump on Truth Social names Apple’s Tim Cook, as quoted by Fox Business and Reuters
- Nov 12Staff email: Kress announces a company meeting, as published by CNBC
- Nov 13Reported: the FT says the board approached Arm CEO Rene Haas, via Reuters. Arm: no comment
- Nov 13Board, to CNBC: “in the process of selecting a search firm”
- Nov 17Nvidia: third-quarter results at about 1:20 p.m. PT, call at 2 p.m. PT
- Nov 18Staff email: company meeting at 9 a.m. PT
Sources: Nvidia newsroom, “NVIDIA Announces CEO Transition” (Nov 12, 2026); Nvidia Form 8-K filed Nov 12, 2026 (SEC EDGAR); board statement to CNBC and Kress’s email to staff as published by CNBC (Nov 12 and 13, 2026); Financial Times report as published by Reuters (Nov 13, 2026); Trump’s Truth Social post as quoted by Fox Business and Reuters (Nov 12, 2026). The track is a schematic, not an official Nvidia process.
Animation: Powered by Thorsten Meyer AI
Leadership During a High-Stakes Search
The transition matters because Nvidia’s chief executive leads a company whose products and plans affect customers, suppliers, employees and business partners. The company says operations, customer commitments and its product roadmap will continue without interruption. That is the company’s assurance; the longer-term leadership approach remains undecided.
Reuters reported that some analysts expect a move away from Huang’s hands-on leadership style toward “a more institutional leadership structure.” That is an outside interpretation, not a board decision. The eventual choice could influence how Nvidia manages its strategy and communicates with stakeholders, but there is no confirmed change to its operating plans or product roadmap in the material available.
The timing also puts the interim leadership in the public eye quickly. Nvidia is scheduled to report quarterly results before holding a company-wide employee meeting the next day. Investors, workers and customers may look to those appearances for information about continuity, but the company has not said that either event will produce a permanent CEO decision.
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From Resignation to Interim Leadership
The current arrangement follows Huang’s resignation as CEO. Nvidia’s November 12 announcement named Kress interim chief executive and Jones board chair. The board said it would consider internal and external candidates, but its later account to CNBC described the search as being at an early stage: it was still selecting a search firm and had not formally engaged potential candidates.
That account contrasts with a November 11 TechCrunch report, citing Bloomberg, that Nvidia was working with an outside firm to identify possible replacements. The available sources do not explain the difference. One possible distinction is between an early review of potential names and formally engaging a firm to run the search, but that interpretation has not been confirmed by Nvidia.
In an email to employees reported by CNBC, Kress said leadership would share more in the coming days and set a company meeting for November 18 at 9 a.m. Pacific Time. Nvidia had already scheduled its third-quarter results for November 17 at about 1:20 p.m. Pacific Time, followed by an earnings call at 2 p.m., according to the company.
“We are in the process of selecting a search firm for the Nvidia CEO role. We have not formally engaged any potential candidates. Any speculation regarding individual candidates, whether internal or external, is premature.”
— Nvidia’s board, in a statement reported by CNBC and Reuters
Candidate Reports Remain Unverified
No permanent successor or public search timetable has been announced. Nvidia says it has not formally engaged any potential candidates, and its board has called speculation premature. The reported approach to Haas has not been independently verified by Reuters, while the board has not commented on Trump’s suggestion of Cook in the sources reviewed.
It is also unclear how the reported earlier work with an outside firm relates to the board’s statement that it is still selecting a search firm. The available reports do not establish whether a firm was informally consulted, whether the search process changed, or whether the accounts refer to different stages of work. No later Nvidia filing was listed on SEC EDGAR as of 17:36 UTC on November 14, according to the source material.
Earnings and Employee Meeting Ahead
Nvidia’s next scheduled public milestone is its third-quarter results on November 17 at about 1:20 p.m. Pacific Time, with an earnings call at 2 p.m. The company has said the release will take place as previously scheduled. Employees are due to meet with leadership on November 18 at 9 a.m. Pacific Time.
Those dates may bring further information about operations and leadership, but Nvidia has not said it will announce a successor or provide a search deadline at either event. For now, Kress remains interim CEO and the board’s stated next step is selecting a search firm.
Key Questions
Who is Nvidia’s interim CEO?
Colette Kress, Nvidia’s chief financial officer, is serving as interim CEO while continuing in her CFO role. The company says she will remain in the interim position until a permanent successor is named.
Has Nvidia hired a search firm?
Not according to the board’s latest reported statement. Nvidia said it was in the process of selecting a search firm and had not formally engaged any potential candidates.
Is Rene Haas confirmed as a candidate?
No. The Financial Times reported that Nvidia’s board approached Arm CEO Rene Haas, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters said it could not independently verify the report, and Nvidia has not confirmed Haas as a candidate.
When is Nvidia’s next company update?
Nvidia scheduled its third-quarter results for November 17, 2026, at about 1:20 p.m. Pacific Time, followed by an earnings call at 2 p.m. A company meeting for employees is scheduled for November 18 at 9 a.m. Pacific Time.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
