{
  "id": 10662658,
  "title": "Early Nvidia advisor says he's owed $1 billion in stock due to a 1993 vesting error, but Nvidia rejected settlement",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/29/early-nvidia-advisor-says-hes-owed-1-billion-in-stock-due-to-a-1993",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-29T10:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tom's Hardware",
    "slug": "tom-s-hardware",
    "url": "https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/big-tech/early-nvidia-advisor-says-hes-owed-usd1-billion-in-stock-due-to-vesting-error-1993-stock-options-amount-to-around-4-5-million-shares-after-splits"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Eric Gullichsen, a former Nvidia advisor, claims he is owed 4.5 million shares, or approximately $1.01 billion, of NVDA stock due to a 1993 vesting error, according to his blog post. Gullichsen, an early Technical Advisory Board member, was granted 25,000 options in September 1993, which were meant to vest in four quarters instead of four years. A CFO letter from April 1996 stated that 15,625 shares had vested, leaving 9,375 more to vest. After 480 stock splits, this would equate to 4.5 million shares or about $1.01 billion, based on Nvidia's stock price on September 25. Gullichsen and his counsel believed the statute of limitations barred any legal action, and it seemed unlikely they would succeed in court. Despite agreeing on a settlement, Nvidia still declined to settle.",
  "summary": "Former Nvidia advisor Eric Gullichsen says a 1993 stock option grant leaves him owed about $1 billion in stock.",
  "key_points": [
    "Eric Gullichsen claims $1.01B in NVDA stock due to 1993 vesting error.",
    "Gullichsen received 25,000 options in 1993, meant to vest in 4 quarters.",
    "Nvidia rejected settlement despite agreeing on a settlement."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "CNBC",
        "title": "Nvidia's record buyback shows chipmaker's stock is too cheap for CEO Huang to resist",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/29/nvidias-record-buyback-shows-chipmakers-stock-is-too-cheap-for-ceo",
        "published": "2026-09-29T11:00:01.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}