Huang called Nvidia's interim CEO "a deer in the headlights", WSJ reports

Nov 13, 2026
Colette Kress had questioned Nvidia's credit-based chip deals and cut its commitment to OpenAI's Ohio data centre project, according to the report.

Former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang called Colette Kress, the finance chief who has now replaced him as interim CEO, "a deer in the headlights" during a meeting earlier this summer, the Wall Street Journal reported, according to TechCrunch. The report cites an anonymous source.

Huang made the comment in a meeting with Nvidia's finance team about plans to give billions of dollars in guarantees to data centre operators that could not afford to buy its chips upfront. He also reportedly said Kress could not help him steer strategy or decisions.

According to the report, Kress had questioned Nvidia's credit-based deals and asked how to value such guarantees and judge their returns. Earlier this year she scaled back Nvidia's commitment to OpenAI's Ohio data centre project: Nvidia had been in talks to provide $250 billion in credit but committed $105 billion.

Huang resigned on Thursday after reports of extramarital affairs. Nvidia is searching for a permanent CEO.

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