Global AI stocks sink as Nvidia CEO’s exit deepens sector sell-off

On November 12, global stocks linked to the artificial intelligence (AI) sector experienced a significant decline following the resignation of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. This came after a scandal deepened surrounding his personal affairs, which undermined Nvidia's leadership and raised fresh risks for the sector already grappling with funding and regulatory issues. Colette Kress, the company's Chief Financial Officer, will assume interim leadership as Nvidia searches for a permanent successor.

As the cornerstone of the AI ecosystem, Nvidia's chipmaking prowess powers infrastructure built around its chips, a strategy that has attracted criticism regarding circular funding. The crisis surrounding Huang's resignation has further weighed on the sector, as Nvidia's influence in AI infrastructure build-out comes under scrutiny. The chipmaker's shares plummeted by 10.3% in pre-market trading, potentially pushing its market value below US$4 trillion for the first time since July 2025.

Nvidia's downfall has rippled through the AI sector, with neocloud firms CoreWeave and IREN, as well as Applied Digital, all witnessing declines. Nebius experienced a particularly sharp drop of 20%, citing a low end to its 2026 revenue forecast. Memory chipmaker Micron Technology, data storage firms Sandisk and Western Digital, and photonic product makers Lumentum and Coherent also saw declines, while server maker Dell was down around 7%.

Chip-related companies Marvell Technology, Intel, Arm Holdings, and Texas Instruments also experienced declines, ranging from 4.5% to 6.3%. AMD and Broadcom, competitors in the AI chip market, saw gains of 2% and 1.4% respectively, as investors speculated that instability at Nvidia could present opportunities for rival companies.

Global tech markets experienced jitters, with Japan and South Korea closing nearly 0.7% lower, while European tech stocks slipped about 1%. Nvidia's share price has fallen to US$163, leading short sellers to make roughly US$3.8 billion in paper profits. At these diminishing valuations, those gains could potentially swell to approximately US$6.8 billion.

Nvidia's market capitalization, which has lost about US$300 billion since November 8, when an investigation into Huang's personal relationship was announced, is now on track to fall below US$4 trillion.