Nvidia (NVDA) chief executive Jensen Huang could be forced out of the company he co-founded in 1993 and has led for 33 years, with directors reportedly preparing to decide whether he should remain in charge following allegations of two extramarital affairs.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that the board was examining the possibility of dismissing Huang over his connection with a woman who may be working for Chinese intelligence. The directors were set to meet as early as Wednesday to determine his fate. The report, however, did not indicate that a vote had already taken place or that Huang had been dismissed.

Such a potential transition could hardly come at a more delicate moment for Nvidia, which faces mounting questions about whether the enormous sums being poured into artificial intelligence infrastructure can be sustained. The company now confronts both uncertainties at once: who will lead it, and whether the spending that fuels demand for its chips can pay off.

Second affair report intensifies pressure

The Wall Street Journal's story followed fresh allegations from The New York Times concerning Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's vice president of healthcare. As Cryptopolitan reported, Huang and Powell had a romantic relationship despite both being married to other people.

The New York Times also reported that the pair were seen behaving affectionately at a hotel in San Jose, California, in March. The interaction was reportedly recorded, although the outlet has not viewed the footage.

Powell holds a significant role at Nvidia, overseeing its global healthcare operations, which cover the computing hardware and software used in medical imaging, pharmaceutical research, biological sciences and health data analysis — industries that Nvidia aims to serve with its AI technology.

Market and political headwinds compound the turmoil

Nvidia's stock is down 7% this week and is on track for a sixth successive weekly decline. Investors have grown increasingly concerned about the pace at which the world's largest technology companies are burning cash on AI infrastructure and whether those investments can be recouped in future revenue.

Political developments have added another complication. Last week's U.S. midterm elections apparently delivered Democrats commanding majorities in both chambers of Congress. Voters also approved dozens of local measures that could make building data centers more difficult, raising questions about expansion plans across the industry.

That matters for Nvidia, whose processors run the computers that operate large AI models — hardware housed in the same kind of data centers those local measures could make harder to build. These are the chips companies rely on to train ever more demanding software and to handle workloads once models are deployed.

Huang is so closely identified with the company that executives, customers and competitors refer to him by his first name. His potential exit would immediately raise the question of leadership at one of the largest suppliers bankrolling the world's AI investment. Whether the board convenes and what it decides are the next concrete developments to watch.