NVIDIA investigates CEO as California rejects wealth tax

NVIDIA is conducting an internal investigation into CEO Jensen Huang following allegations of a relationship with a suspected Chinese spy. The board noted that four of its nine members have served since 1993, including original venture capitalists Mark Stephens and Tench Cox. The investigation is being led by the CEO of Cooley, a law firm. At the same time, California voters rejected a proposed wealth tax in a mid-50s vote, with a subsequent proposition banning future attempts to pass such a tax also passing. Sergey Brin and other tech founders outspent unions 10 to 1 in the campaign. The rejection is viewed as a signal to prevent the exodus of wealthy entrepreneurs from the state, particularly given that Anthropic’s IPO is projected to create significant individual wealth for employees. Some commentators have argued that Huang requires a pass due to his critical importance to the US AI sector, drawing parallels to how Steve Jobs was treated during the backdating stock option scandal.