Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is in the spotlight, following reports of an alleged affair with a Chinese spy. While Huang was previously perceived as a ‘cool’ and laid-back boss, a different reality is now emerging.
Insiders told the *New York Post* that although he appeared calm and composed from the outside, the internal environment at the company was often highly stressful.
Jensen Huang lashed out at an Indian-origin VP
According to reports, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang frequently mistreated employees and used abusive language. On one occasion, in a fit of rage, he even threw a water bottle at a senior executive.
In February of last year, Jensen Huang held a closed-door meeting with over 30 company executives. During this session, he directed his intense anger toward Jay Puri, a senior vice president of Indian origin.
A source familiar with the incident stated that Huang, while berating Puri—the Executive Vice President of Worldwide Field Operations—said, “I want you to catch the flu and get even sicker. I want you to die and rid us all of this trouble.”
The source noted that while Huang’s outbursts were not uncommon, this particular remark left everyone present stunned and silent.
Jensen Huang’s harsh demeanor
On another occasion, Huang ejected a senior leader from a meeting—even though it was the executive’s very first meeting with him. Huang shouted, “Are you laughing at me?” ‘All I see here are dead faces—get out!’
People within the company also recounted an incident at Nvidia’s headquarters in Santa Clara, California, where, during a meeting, Huang threw a water bottle at a top executive.
In an article published this week in *The New York Times*, Stephen Witt—author of *The Thinking Machine*—wrote that Huang’s modest public demeanor was, in reality, a way to mask his ego.
