Pakistan, Nov. 13 -- Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is stepping down, leaving the AI industry without its biggest champion and clouding the future of the chipmaker he built into an AI powerhouse. Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress will take over as interim CEO as Nvidia looks for a permanent successor, the company said on Thursday. It named former Synopsys CEO and board member Harvey Jones as its first-ever board chairman. Huang, who co-founded Nvidia and is its fourth-largest investor with a stake of about 3.61%, will exit the board as well.

Nvidia shares fell more than 10% in premarket trading, and weighed on the broader market. Pressure had been mounting on Huang in recent days after reports said the 63-year-old, who is married, had an af...