Donald Trump called now former NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang ‘brilliant’ but admitted that he was right to step down if it is confirmed he had an affair with a Chinese spy.
Huang stepped down Friday as the company’s CEO after co-founding it 33 years ago and leading it to become the US’s most valuable company.
His resignation comes a day after the New York Times reported that Huang, 63, had an affair with a subordinate, Kimberly Powell.
Trump spoke to Stephen A Smith on Thursday in the Roosevelt Room at the White House and sounded off on his conversations with Huang since the scandal broke.
‘It’s sad. He’s a tremendous talent. He did something nobody else did. He has a chip that’s so complex, so brilliant, you can’t copy it. What he’s done is incredible, he built an incredible company,’ he said.
Smith asked Trump point blank if Huang was right to step down, which led to a rare pause from Trump before answering.
‘The big thing was, was the woman a spy? If the woman was a spy, yes, if the woman was not a spy perhaps it would be different,’ Trump said.
Then Trump offered encouragement to Huang – whom he said is ‘going through hell right now’ for his future endeavors.
Donald Trump called now former NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang ‘brilliant’ but admitted that he was right to step down if it is confirmed he had an affair with a Chinese spy in an interview with Stephen A Smith (pictured right)
Huang stepped down on Thursday after reports of multiple affairs, one with a subordinate and another with an alleged Chinese spy. Trump said he did a ‘fantastic job’ at the company
‘Somehow, he’ll end on his feet. I always thought of him as a fine man. He feels most badly about his wife and family.’
The interview was a product of Smith’s dinner with Trump, Bill Maher and Kid Rock a few weeks ago.
Trump reiterated his view that former Apple CEO Tim Cook should replace Huang as the company’s new chief executive.
His resignation comes a day after the New York Times reported that Huang, 63, had an affair with a subordinate, Kimberly Powell.
Last week, it was also reported that Huang had an affair with an executive at Singapore-based data company Megaspeed named Alice Huang, who has no relation to the former Nvidia boss, and is reportedly an alleged Chinese spy.
The dual affairs rocked the $4 trillion company, sending its stock price plummeting and raising concerns over how the spy may have duped Huang.
Reports indicated that Trump was briefed on Huang’s affair with an alleged spy before he was allowed to board the plane, but that he still allowed him to board.
The affairs prompted an internal investigation at the company before Huang was ousted, though it is unclear how Huang’s departure will impact the probe.
Lawmakers are also interested in hearing exactly what happened, particularly with the alleged spy.
Despite Huang’s close ties to Trump, Republicans have expressed interest in subpoenaing the former Nvidia CEO to investigate the matter.
‘Jensen Huang himself has been a pretty bold, some might even say arrogant promoter, sort of dismissing our concerns about China having access to these most advanced chips,’ Republican Senator Kevin Cramer told CNBC Thursday morning.
‘And I do not take that lightly… I would be happy to support a subpoena.’
Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Brian Mast, Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party John Moolenaar and Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Rick Crawford, all Republicans, have also voiced support for subpoenaing Huang.
The three lawmakers sent a letter to Huang last week asking him to appear for a ‘joint, closed-door briefing’ on the allegations of his affair with the alleged Chinese spy.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Huang is expected to cooperate with lawmakers and meet with them behind closed doors, though it is unclear how his resignation may impact the agreement.
This is a developing story.
