Who is Kimberly Powell? Nvidia vice president who had extramarital affair with CEO Jensen Huang allegedly

Kimberly Powell, Nvidia's vice president of healthcare, has come under the spotlight after The New York Times reported that she allegedly had an extramarital relationship with the company's CEO, Jensen Huang. The report, published on November 11, cited five people who worked at Nvidia.

NYT reports that Powell, who reports to Huang, was allegedly involved in a relationship with the 63-year-old CEO. It also cited sources who said the two were seen behaving affectionately at a hotel in San Jose, California, during an Nvidia conference in March.

The allegations have brought attention to Powell, a senior executive who has spent nearly two decades at the chipmaker and currently oversees its global healthcare business. Neither Powell nor Nvidia immediately responded to requests for comment from the newspaper, according to the report. Reuters also reported the allegations, while noting that it could not independently verify them.

Who is Kimberly Powell?

Powell is Nvidia's vice president of healthcare. She is responsible for the company's worldwide healthcare business, which includes hardware and software platforms built around accelerated computing, artificial intelligence (AI) and visualisation.

According to her professional biography on Nvidia's website, her work covers several areas of healthcare technology, including medical imaging, life sciences, drug discovery and healthcare analytics.

Powell joined Nvidia in 2008. Her initial responsibility was to establish the company's graphics processing units (GPUs) as an accelerator platform for medical imaging instruments.

Her role has since expanded beyond medical imaging. She previously led Nvidia's higher education and research business, along with strategic evangelism programmes, Nvidia AI Labs and the Nvidia Inception programme, which supports startups.

What does she do at Nvidia?

Powell leads Nvidia's healthcare business, which focuses on applying the company's computing technology to healthcare and life sciences.

The business covers platforms used in medical imaging, where accelerated computing can support the processing and visualisation of medical data. It also includes applications in drug discovery, life sciences research and healthcare analytics.

Her work connects Nvidia's AI and computing platforms with healthcare organisations, researchers and companies developing medical technologies.

Powell's position puts her in charge of a business that spans both the hardware and software sides of Nvidia's healthcare operations.

How long has Kimberly Powell worked at Nvidia?

Powell joined Nvidia in 2008, giving her more than 18 years at the company. She initially worked on establishing GPUs as an accelerator platform for medical imaging equipment.

She later took on responsibilities across higher education, research and AI-related business initiatives before becoming vice president of healthcare.

Her career at Nvidia has therefore followed the expansion of the company's computing technology into areas beyond its original graphics and gaming business.

What did the New York Times report about Powell and Jensen Huang?

The New York Times reported that Powell and Huang allegedly had an extramarital relationship, citing five people who worked at Nvidia. Two sources told the newspaper that the pair had been recorded behaving affectionately at a hotel during an Nvidia conference in March.

The report comes amid wider scrutiny of Huang's personal relationships and an independent investigation by Nvidia's board into whether he was targeted by a foreign intelligence effort.

Huang had acknowledged being unfaithful to his wife in a message to employees, according to Reuters. The latest report named Powell as another person with whom he allegedly had a relationship. Nvidia shares fell nearly 4% in extended trading, according to Reuters.