President Donald Trump threw Tim Cook’s name into the ring to replace Jensen Huang after the Nvidia CEO resigned Thursday following a scandal involving an alleged Chinese spy.
The sudden departure of Huang, who has led Nvidia through its remarkable transformation from a graphics card manufacturer into one of the world’s most valuable companies, sent shockwaves through the technology sector and raised urgent questions about corporate governance and national security vulnerabilities at America’s most critical tech firms.
Trump made the recommendation on Truth Social shortly after news broke of Huang’s resignation.
“There is only one man to take his place.”
The president said Huang “has done a fantastic job,” adding that “there is only one man to take his place” — former Apple CEO Tim Cook.
“A Legend replaces a Legend!” Trump added.
Trump is a longtime supporter of Cook, who he famously nicknamed “Tim Apple.” The president has repeatedly called on Cook to manufacture iPhones in the U.S. and praised Apple’s $500 billion investment in American operations.
The relationship between Trump and Cook has been characterized by mutual respect despite occasional tensions over trade policy and manufacturing. Cook’s experience navigating complex international supply chains and his track record of maintaining strong relationships with both Washington and Wall Street make him a natural candidate in Trump’s eyes for stabilizing Nvidia during this crisis.
Cook served as CEO of Apple from 2011 to 2026 and now serves as executive chairman of the tech giant’s board.
His tenure at Apple saw the company’s valuation soar to unprecedented heights, making him one of the most successful corporate leaders in American history. However, whether Cook would be willing to leave his current role to take on the challenge of leading Nvidia through what promises to be a turbulent period remains an open question.
By total market value, Apple and Nvidia are the two largest publicly traded companies in the world. Markets began to panic Thursday as Nvidia dropped below $4 trillion in market value following Huang’s resignation.
The market reaction underscores the critical importance of Nvidia to the broader technology ecosystem and artificial intelligence infrastructure. Investors are grappling with uncertainty about the company’s leadership transition and potential fallout from the national security implications of the scandal.
Huang, the founder and president of the chip manufacturing company since its inception in 1993, announced his resignation after disclosing to Nvidia that he had maintained a romantic relationship with an alleged Chinese asset, Alice Huang.
The scandal represents one of the most serious security breaches involving a major American technology company in recent years, raising fundamental questions about how foreign intelligence operations may have penetrated the highest levels of the semiconductor industry at a time when chip technology has become central to both economic competitiveness and national defense.
BREAKING: The DOJ is probing Alice Huang, the woman suspected as a spy targeting Jensen Huang, over whether she was involved in smuggling products made by Super Micro Computer, $SMCI, to China, per Bloomberg SMCI’s stock extends losses to -14% on the day. https://t.co/aj9zXBYy4P
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) November 12, 2026
“I was unfaithful to my wife. My actions hurt her and our children. There is no excuse for what I did. I am deeply sorry,” Huang said in a companywide email, according to Axios.
Alice Huang, the former CEO of Singaporean tech company Megaspeed, allegedly used her relationship with Huang to help move more than $7.5 billion worth of Nvidia chips to Chinese tech firms over the last three years.
The scale of the alleged chip transfers highlights the potential damage to American technological advantages in artificial intelligence and high-performance computing. These advanced semiconductors are subject to export restrictions designed to prevent China from accessing cutting-edge technology that could be used for military applications or to enhance surveillance capabilities.
The DOJ is now probing whether Alice Huang was involved in smuggling products made by Super Micro Computer to China, according to Bloomberg reporting cited in the market update above.
Huang agreed to testify before the House Foreign Affairs Committee and its select committees regarding the incident before Thanksgiving.
The congressional testimony will likely focus on how the relationship developed, what information or access may have been compromised, and whether existing corporate security protocols were adequate to detect and prevent such breaches. The hearing could have far-reaching implications for how the technology industry approaches security vetting and monitoring of executive relationships with foreign nationals.
