🔍 Read the full analysis: Nvidia CEO Search: What The Board Says And What Happens Next on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
Nvidia’s board says it is selecting a search firm and has not formally engaged potential CEO candidates, making reports and public suggestions about successors unconfirmed. CFO Colette Kress is interim CEO, while Harvey C. Jones is the company’s first board chair. Nvidia has not announced a timeline for naming a permanent CEO.
Nvidia’s board says it has not formally engaged any candidates to replace former CEO Jensen Huang and is still selecting a search firm, as the chipmaker begins its leadership search with CFO Colette Kress serving as interim CEO. The board’s statement, reported Friday, November 13, follows a reported approach to Arm CEO Rene Haas and a public suggestion by President Donald Trump that Apple executive chairman Tim Cook take the role; neither is a confirmed candidate.
The board told CNBC it was “in the process of selecting a search firm for the Nvidia CEO role” and had “not formally engaged any potential candidates.” It added that “any speculation regarding individual candidates, whether internal or external, is premature.” Nvidia’s November 12 press release says the search will consider both internal and external candidates, but it gives no deadline for selecting a permanent chief executive.
Kress will remain CFO while serving as interim CEO, until a permanent successor is named, according to Nvidia’s press release and a Form 8-K. The company’s filing says the board appointed her while it conducts the search. Board director Harvey C. Jones, who has served since 1993, became chair. Nvidia described him as its first-ever board chair.
The Financial Times reported that Nvidia’s board approached Arm CEO Rene Haas, citing people familiar with the matter, Reuters reported. The FT said Haas was among several possible candidates, with no guarantee he would be offered the job or accept. Arm declined to comment, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the report. Trump, meanwhile, posted on Truth Social that “there is only one man to take his place – TIM COOK of Apple,” according to Reuters and Fox Business. Nvidia’s board has not commented on 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 CEO Search
The succession process matters because Nvidia is a major supplier of chips and systems used in artificial intelligence computing, and its leadership decisions can affect employees, customers, suppliers and other business partners. The board says operations, customer commitments and the product roadmap will continue without interruption. That is the company’s stated position; the sources provided do not describe any immediate change to those commitments.
The larger question is whether Nvidia’s next chief executive will lead in the same highly visible, hands-on way associated with Huang or whether the company will adopt a different leadership structure. Reuters reported that some analysts expect a shift toward “a more institutional leadership structure.” That is an analyst view, not a decision announced by Nvidia. The appointment of an interim CEO and a new board chair gives the company a leadership arrangement while the board considers its long-term choice.
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Interim Roles and Search Status
Nvidia announced Huang’s resignation and the interim leadership arrangement on November 12. Its press release said Kress, who had been CFO since September 2013, agreed to serve as interim CEO while continuing as CFO. The company’s Form 8-K also records Jones’s appointment as chair. The filing identifies him as a director since 1993 and says he has been managing partner of Square Wave Ventures, described as a private family office, since 2004.
Jones and Kress wrote to employees on Thursday, according to emails obtained by CNBC. Jones said the board had asked Kress to serve while it searches for a permanent successor, considering internal and external candidates, and described her as “a key architect of NVIDIA’s growth and capital strategy.” Kress said employees would hear more from leadership in the coming days and that a company meeting was planned for November 18 at 9 a.m. Pacific time.
The board’s account of the search has also drawn attention because TechCrunch, citing Bloomberg, reported on November 11 that Nvidia was working with an outside firm to identify potential replacements for Huang. The board said two days later that it was still selecting a search firm. The available reporting does not explain whether the earlier work and the board’s formal search process refer to different steps.
“We have not formally engaged any potential candidates.”
— Nvidia’s board, in a statement reported by CNBC and Reuters on November 13
Candidates and Timing Remain Open
No permanent successor, search firm or public selection timetable has been announced. The board says it has not formally engaged candidates, while the reported approach to Haas remains an account attributed to unnamed sources that Reuters could not independently verify. Arm declined to comment. Cook’s name appears in Trump’s public suggestion, not in a confirmed Nvidia board announcement.
It is also unclear how the November 11 report that Nvidia was working with an outside firm relates to the board’s statement that it was still selecting a search firm. The available sources do not reconcile the two accounts. Nvidia has not publicly said whether it expects to appoint someone from inside the company or recruit externally.
Earnings and Employee Meeting Ahead
Nvidia’s third-quarter results are scheduled for November 17 at about 1:20 p.m. Pacific time, followed by an earnings call at 2 p.m., according to the company. The results are scheduled as previously planned. A company-wide employee meeting is set for November 18 at 9 a.m. Pacific time, according to Kress’s email published by CNBC. The sources do not say whether the board will provide a CEO-search update at either event.
Until Nvidia announces a permanent appointment, Kress is set to lead as interim CEO while continuing as CFO, and Jones will chair the board. The next confirmed milestones are the earnings release and employee meeting; the search’s duration and the timing of any further candidate announcements remain unknown.
Key Questions
Who is Nvidia’s interim CEO?
Colette Kress, Nvidia’s CFO, is serving as interim CEO. The company says she will continue as CFO until a permanent successor is named.
Has Nvidia hired a search firm or formally approached candidates?
The board said on November 13 that it was selecting a search firm and had not formally engaged potential candidates. It has not announced a firm or a completed candidate process.
Is Rene Haas confirmed as a candidate?
No. The Financial Times reported that Nvidia’s board approached Haas, citing people familiar with the matter. Arm declined to comment, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the report. Nvidia has not confirmed Haas as a candidate.
Did Nvidia say it will appoint Tim Cook?
No. Trump publicly suggested Apple executive chairman Tim Cook for the role, but that was Trump’s suggestion, not an announcement by Nvidia’s board. The board has not commented on it in the cited sources.
When is Nvidia expected to provide its next updates?
Nvidia’s third-quarter results are scheduled for November 17, 2026, with a company meeting for employees on November 18. The company has not said whether either event will include a CEO-search update.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
