Trump Suggests Tim Cook as Nvidia's Next CEO After Huang's Exit
President Trump publicly floated former Apple CEO Tim Cook as Nvidia's next chief after Jensen Huang resigned Thursday, calling Cook a great candidate.
President Donald Trump on Thursday suggested former Apple CEO Tim Cook take over Nvidia after Jensen Huang resigned following reports of affairs, including one with a woman alleged to be a Chinese spy. Nvidia shares fell 4.3% in delayed trading; Apple shares were little changed, down 0.2%.
Shortly after Huang's resignation was announced, Trump posted on Truth Social saying there was only one man to take Huang's place: Tim Cook of Apple, calling a legend replacing a legend. He called Huang's job fantastic.
Trump repeated the pitch on a new episode of Stephen A. Smith's Straight Shooter podcast published Thursday. He said Cook just sort of semi-retired from Apple and has done one of the greatest jobs in the history of business. Trump argued that Apple would never be what it is today if Steve Jobs were still around, adding that Cook took brilliant ideas and designs from Jobs and others and made Apple into one of the great companies of the world in a fairly short period. Trump said he thinks Cook would be a great candidate to run Nvidia.
Cook stepped down as Apple's CEO on September 1 and moved into an executive chairman role, with John Ternus now running the company. Nvidia, meanwhile, is being led by CFO Colette Kress as interim CEO while its board searches for a permanent replacement, considering both internal and external candidates, according to the company's announcement. The board has said it expects operations and the product roadmap to continue without interruption.
Trump said he spoke with Huang the day before and that the former CEO is going through hell. On the podcast he asked whether the woman involved was a spy, saying that if she was a spy Huang should have stepped down, and if not, perhaps it would be different. Trump called Huang a tremendous talent and said other tech leaders have publicly supported him.
Apple and Nvidia did not immediately reply to requests for comment. Cook has an ongoing relationship with Trump, including gifting the president a 24-karat gold and glass statue last year.
What happens next is unclear: Nvidia's board has not said whether it will consider Trump's suggestion, and neither Cook nor Apple has commented. The board's search for a permanent CEO is ongoing.