Nvidia Market Value Falls $1tr as Huang Exit Hits Shares
Nvidia market value dropped sharply on Thursday after Jensen Huang’s departure rattled investors in artificial intelligence stocks. The chipmaker’s shares fell as much as 14.3 per cent in the session, and its market value stayed on course to close below $4 trillion for the first time since July 2025.
The fall capped a month of losses for the world’s most valuable chipmaker. Nvidia has now shed more than $1 trillion in market value over the past month, as rising interest rates, heavy tech company debt and regulatory concerns weighed on sentiment.
Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress will take over as interim chief executive while Nvidia looks for a permanent successor. The company announced the change after the board opened an investigation into Huang’s relationship with a businesswoman, Alice Huang, who is alleged to be a Chinese spy. News of Huang’s two extramarital affairs had plunged the chipmaker into its worst crisis, Reuters reported.
“The recovery looks partly driven by bargain hunting after an aggressive selloff, with some investors seemingly betting that Nvidia’s competitive advantages, strong AI demand and established customer relationships will survive a leadership transition,” said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.
Retail investors also stepped in. They bought a net $111 million worth of Nvidia stock in the first half-hour of trading, the biggest opening bid on record for the stock, according to data firm Vanda Research.
The slide spread across the sector. Nvidia-backed cloud firm CoreWeave dropped 8.1 per cent, although it also came off its lows. Chip stocks were mixed, with the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index last down 0.9 per cent after falling as much as 3.7 per cent.
Why Nvidia is called the Bank of AI
Nvidia sits at the centre of the AI ecosystem. It does more than sell chips. It also finances much of the infrastructure built around them, a strategy that has drawn scrutiny over circular funding, where money moves between Nvidia, its customers and the firms that buy its hardware.
That role is why the leadership crisis reaches beyond one company. “Nvidia has been called the ‘Bank of AI’. If they have to take a step back because of what’s going on, will that cut off funding to smaller companies that need it? That’s an open question,” said Joe Saluzzi, partner and co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading.
Nvidia market value: what happened before Thursday
The board announced its investigation on Sunday. Huang’s departure followed days later. Feature Pakistan reported Huang’s resignation and the board’s decision to remove him earlier this week.
The investigation and the resignation turned a governance row into a market event. Thursday’s trading showed how far the damage has spread, from Nvidia’s own shares to the cloud firms and chip stocks that depend on its hardware.
Why it matters for Pakistan
For Pakistan, the row matters because the AI work now under way at home runs on the same hardware. Pakistani startups won GSMA grants of up to £250,000 for AI finance work this week, and the tools they build depend on Nvidia chips and the cloud firms that buy them. If funding for AI infrastructure tightens, smaller firms feel it first, and that includes startups in Pakistan trying to raise money for AI products.
A Microsoft 365 outage also hit Outlook, Teams and Copilot worldwide this week, a reminder of how much daily work now depends on a small number of AI platforms.
What to watch next
Investors will watch who Nvidia picks as permanent chief executive, and whether the board’s investigation brings more disclosures. They will also watch whether the bargain hunting that steadied the shares on Thursday holds, or whether funding worries push AI stocks lower again.
Frequently asked questions
Why did Nvidia shares fall?
The shares fell after Jensen Huang’s departure rattled investors, with the stock down as much as 14.3 per cent in Thursday’s session. Funding and regulatory concerns, which were already weighing on AI stocks, added to the pressure.
How much value has Nvidia lost?
Nvidia has shed more than $1 trillion in market value over the past month. Its market value was on course to close below $4 trillion for the first time since July 2025.
Who is running Nvidia now?
Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress is interim chief executive while Nvidia looks for a permanent successor to Jensen Huang.
What is the Bank of AI?
It is the name given to Nvidia’s role at the centre of the AI ecosystem. The company finances much of the infrastructure built around its chips, which has drawn scrutiny over circular funding.
Why does the Nvidia crisis matter for Pakistan?
Pakistani AI startups build on Nvidia hardware and the cloud firms that buy it, and they won GSMA grants for AI finance work this week. Tighter AI funding would reach smaller firms first, including startups in Pakistan.
