When NVIDIA announced on 12 November that Jensen Huang had resigned as President, CEO and board member with immediate effect, the company turned to an experienced executive from within its ranks. Colette Kress, NVIDIA’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, was appointed Interim CEO and will retain her existing roles while the Board searches for a permanent successor. The search will consider both internal and external candidates.

NVIDIA has not disclosed the reason for Huang’s departure. However, his resignation follows reports of two alleged affairs, including one involving a woman suspected of having links to Chinese intelligence. Huang publicly apologised this past Sunday for being unfaithful to his wife, whom he has been married to since 1985.

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So, who is Colette Kress, and what makes her the person entrusted with leading one of the world’s most influential technology companies through this transition?

Over a decade inside NVIDIA

Kress joined NVIDIA in September 2013 as CFO. She has led the finance organisation since then, a period in which the company grew from a graphics chipmaker into a central supplier of AI and accelerated computing infrastructure. The Board says she has played a very important role in that growth of the company.

In a statement published on NVIDIA’s website, newly appointed Chair Harvey Jones said Kress has a strong understanding of the company’s business, customers, operations and financial position. He added that the Board has full confidence in the leadership team.

A 25-year career in tech finance

Before NVIDIA, Kress spent nearly 25 years in finance roles at major technology companies.

  • Cisco: She spent three years as senior vice president and CFO of Cisco’s Business Technology and Operations Finance organisation. She was responsible for financial strategy, planning, reporting and business development across all business segments, engineering and operations.
  • Microsoft: She spent 13 years there. Four of those were as CFO of the Server and Tools division, and she also held senior roles in corporate planning and finance.
  • Texas Instruments: She held a variety of finance positions there earlier in her career.

She holds a B.Sc. in finance from the University of Arizona and an MBA from Southern Methodist University.

What Kress background tells us

Her career has been spent on the commercial side of enterprise technology. Server and Tools at Microsoft and a business technology finance role at Cisco both sit close to the infrastructure decisions that enterprise IT leaders make. The company’s Board says it expects operations, customer commitments and the product roadmap to continue without interruption. Kress is well placed to deliver that message credibly, since she has long been involved in the planning and financial side of those commitments. Kress will hold the CEO and CFO roles simultaneously. The company has not said how finance responsibilities will be handled day to day, and the announcement gives no reason for Huang’s departure. Both are worth watching as the interim period continues.

In her statement, Kress said she is committed to building on the foundation Huang created over 33 years. She said NVIDIA will keep advancing its work in accelerated computing and AI while serving customers, partners, developers and shareholders.

NVIDIA still plans to report its third-quarter fiscal 2027 results on Tuesday, 17 November, at about 1:20 p.m. PT. The earnings call follows at 2 p.m. PT. It will be Kress’s first major public appearance as Interim CEO, and enterprise leaders will be listening for guidance and any details on the CEO search.