Nvidia (NVDA) is facing fresh scrutiny after semiconductor research firm SemiAnalysis raised questions about the events surrounding Jensen Huang’s exit as CEO. The firm suggested that U.S. intelligence sources may have played a role in bringing the controversy around Huang into the public eye.
However, this remains an unproven theory, with no public evidence that U.S. officials sought to force Huang out. The report adds to the debate over chip export rules and Nvidia’s role in the global AI market.
SemiAnalysis Points to a Possible Link
In a report published Thursday, SemiAnalysis pointed to the timing of the controversy around Huang, which came as lawmakers in Washington were pushing the Remote Access Security Act (RASA).
The firm noted that The New York Times (NYT) cited U.S. intelligence sources five times in its coverage of Alice Huang, who is at the center of an FBI probe into alleged links to Chinese intelligence.
SemiAnalysis questioned why details that U.S. officials had reportedly known for months became public at this point. It raised the possibility that the reports could have helped build support for tighter rules on AI chip access to China and put pressure on Huang, who had opposed broad limits on chip sales to the country.
Why the China Chip Rules Matter
RASA would give U.S. regulators more power to stop Chinese firms from renting access to restricted AI chips through data centers in other countries.
The bill passed the House by a 369-22 vote and is now facing a push in the Senate. Nvidia and Oracle (ORCL) have lobbied against the bill, as it could affect cloud firms that rent out computing power across global markets.
Huang had argued that broad limits on chip sales could push Chinese AI firms toward local chip makers such as Huawei.
SemiAnalysis warned that tighter rules could hurt U.S. firms by cutting off cloud revenue and limiting access to work by Chinese AI developers. The firm also said weaker links with Chinese researchers could reduce the flow of open-source tools used by U.S. AI firms.
Colette Kress Takes Charge as Nvidia Prepares for Earnings
Nvidia’s board has named longtime CFO Colette Kress as interim CEO following Huang’s departure, just days before the company reports its third-quarter fiscal 2027 results on November 17. Kress joined Nvidia in 2013 after senior finance roles at Microsoft (MSFT), Cisco (CSCO), and Texas Instruments (TXN).
According to Reuters, Kress has at times challenged Huang’s large investment plans, including deals linked to OpenAI and AI infrastructure firms such as Lambda. A proposed $250 billion commitment tied to an OpenAI data center project in Ohio was later cut to $120 billion.
What Is the Future of NVDA Stock?
On TipRanks, NVDA has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 27 Buys and 10 Hold ratings. The average Nvidia price target of $254.84 implies 53.3% upside potential from current levels. Year-to-date, NVDA shares have dropped 6.9%.
