Nvidia has a 'deep bench' if Jensen Huang steps aside, tech investor says Brian Sozzi · Executive Editor Mon, November 9, 2026 at 1:19 PM EST 2 min read NVDA -5.28% AAPL +2.79% Explore stocks on Coinbase Trading disclosure Trading disclosure The above button links to Coinbase. Yahoo Finance is not a broker-dealer or investment adviser and does not offer securities or cryptocurrencies for sale or facilitate trading. Coinbase pays us for certain activity generated through this link. Prices displayed are informational.
Nvidia can still crush it in the coming years if embattled CEO Jensen Huang is forced to step away from the company.
When asked how important Huang is to the next few years of the AI chip darling, Niles Investment Management founder and longtime tech investor Dan Niles told Sozzi Unleashed that he "isn't."
"[Huang's] got a very deep bench, and a historical example is what happened to Apple after Steve Jobs passed away. … Did it collapse?" Niles said. "So Jensen's done a great job of empowering people underneath him. I think one thing that will happen is there will be a successor appointed. The board will force that. And so I think that will occur out of this."
"Are the products in the pipeline, much like when Steve Jobs passed away, that will keep the company going for the next couple of years? Absolutely," Niles added. "But is Jensen very important to the company? Completely. So those are two separate thoughts. But they can both coexist."
Read more: Follow live updates and reactions for Nvidia stock
Nvidia's board of directors has launched an independent investigation into reports that a woman CEO Jensen Huang had an affair with was allegedly spying on him for the Chinese government.
Huang admitted to the affair on Sunday in an email to employees.
Nvidia stock fell 5% on Monday as a dark cloud settled over Nvidia and its once-Teflon CEO's future.
Niles said this is a "horrible" situation for Huang, someone he has known for 30 years.
"The big question every Nvidia and tech investor is asking this morning … Will Jensen stay on as CEO of Nvidia?" Yorkville Ives partner Dan Ives wrote in a note. "The Board investigation will be key and investors are factoring in Jensen will stay on as CEO with a small chance he ultimately is removed or steps aside and the stock is down modestly accordingly. Jensen is the core DNA of Nvidia and its AI success and ambitions are heavily tied to him staying on as CEO."
Ives added, "Jensen is not replaceable ... there is no other person on the management team bench that can step in seamlessly as CEO and that speaks to the key risk now with Nvidia that investors will factor this dynamic to the stock. Jensen has become the global face of the AI Revolution and that now will be front and center for Nvidia how to navigate this very difficult situation looking forward."
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