Petition to reinstate Jensen Huang gains 132,000 signatures as Elon Musk backs Nvidia CEO's return amid espionage probe

Synopsis

Bring Jensen back petition: In response to Jensen Huang's resignation as Nvidia CEO, the 'Stand with Jensen' petition has gained traction, amassing 132,000 signatures, including endorsements from Elon Musk and other tech tycoons. The initiative calls for justice and due process for Huang, who faces serious allegations. As scrutiny intensifies, many are calling for the Nvidia board to conduct a transparent inquiry and possibly reinstate him.

Stand with Jensen Huang petition: A petition to reinstate former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has collected 132,000 sign-ons, site's counter showed. Elon Musk and Replit CEO Amjad Masad are among those who has signed the petition with organizers claiming more than 100,000 signatures. "Stand with Jensen" is the online petition asking Nvidia's board of directors to bring Jensen Huang back to the helm of the company after his November 12 resignation.

"A petition is underway to reinstate Jensen and I'm signing it too," the Tesla and SpaceX CEO wrote on X. The "Stand with Jensen" petition also garnered signatures from big names such as Boom Supersonic CEO Blake Scholl and Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan.

Petition to reinstate Jensen Huang gets traction

A website for the campaign, dubbed "Stand with Jensen," said the list includes more than 58,000 shareholders, more than 5,600 current Nvidia employees, and over 1,000 former employees. In an X post on Saturday, the organizers said they were "actively working" to remove fake signatures.

One Nvidia employee who signed the letter told Business Insider that similar efforts are happening inside the company. A post with similar sentiments appeared on an internal portal where employees can submit questions and suggestions, they said.

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According to a report in The Wired, post had garnered 1,600 comments as of Thursday — a figure that has now more than doubled, the employee said.

The "Stand with Jensen" organizers said in an open letter to Nvidia's board posted to its website that they believe the board removed Huang without an investigation and "meaningful due process." "We have not been shown evidence substantiating the espionage allegation. After thirty-three years pouring his heart and soul into NVIDIA, Jensen deserves due process, not mob justice," they said.

A signatory who describes himself as an engineer at Nvidia called Huang an "essential part" of the company in a comment on the website. "His private affairs are none of my business, and if his actions violated our code of conduct, it has to be dealt with. Please bring him back and give him fair treatment, taking his track record and importance for NVIDIA and the wider community into account," the employee told Business Insider.

Former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang

Bring Jensen back petition

Here's what Bring Jensen Huang back petition reads:

We are current and former NVIDIA employees, partners, shareholders, and supporters. We write with gratitude for Jensen Huang and with a clear demand to the Board: bring Jensen back while an independent investigation establishes the facts, unless and until you can provide compelling evidence that his removal is in NVIDIA's best interests.

For thirty-three years, Jensen poured his heart and soul into building NVIDIA. He bet it on ideas that most of the industry dismissed, carried it through years when the bets looked foolish, and stayed long enough to see them change how the world computes. Many of us joined because of him. Many of us stayed because of how he treated the work: as something worth getting right, together, at whatever hour it took. This company is the work of his life. That deserves more than gratitude after the fact. It deserves fairness now.

Our understanding is that an outside investigation has been announced but has not yet concluded. We are concerned that Jensen was removed without meaningful due process. We do not have access to the Board’s private deliberations. We have not been shown evidence substantiating the allegation that the woman at the center of this controversy was a spy. Suspicion or association alone is not a sufficient basis for ending Jensen's leadership. The inquiry must establish the facts, not merely justify an outcome already imposed.

We ask the Board to take three actions:

Reinstate Jensen as CEO. Bring him back while an independent investigation establishes the facts. If the Board believes his continued absence is necessary, provide a specific, evidence-based explanation of why it serves NVIDIA’s best interests.

Ensure an independent investigation and a fair hearing. Disclose the inquiry’s scope, independence, and expected timeline, and give Jensen a meaningful opportunity to respond before reaching a final decision.

Provide a timely public explanation. Explain the concerns, the evidence supporting them, and how employees’ and shareholders’ interests were weighed. Respect legitimate confidentiality without using it to withhold all explanation.

Thirty-three years of leadership do not place anyone above accountability. But accountability requires evidence, a fair hearing, and a reasoned decision. Jensen deserves due process, not mob justice.

Thank you, Jensen. We stand with you.

Jensen Huang quits as Nvidia CEO

Earlier this week, Nvidia's board of directors announced an investigation into whether Huang had been the "target of a foreign intelligence effort" after he admitted to having an affair in a letter to employees. Days later, Huang resigned following reports of another affair with an Nvidia executive. The board appointed Colette Kress, the company's executive vice president and chief financial officer, as interim CEO while it searches for a permanent successor.

An October report by The New York Times said Huang had developed a "close relationship" with Alice Huang, a Singapore-based tech executive at Megaspeed. Citing US intelligence officials, the report claimed she could be a spy for the Chinese government, an allegation Beijing has since denied. On Thursday, Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Department of Justice had not reached a conclusion on whether Alice Huang was a spy.

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