Treasury Secretary Bessent urges NVIDIA to seek external leadership

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on Sunday that NVIDIA should look outside its existing organization to find a new chief executive. The recommendation comes as the semiconductor giant searches for a successor to Jensen Huang, who recently stepped down from his role amid public revelations regarding extramarital affairs.

Bessent shared these views during an appearance on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures program. He emphasized that the company needs to broaden its search criteria by considering candidates who are not currently part of the NVIDIA team.

Reports indicate that the board of directors is actively evaluating several prominent figures from the technology sector. Among the leading contenders are two Israeli executives: Johny Srouji, who serves as the chief hardware officer at Apple, and Eyal Waldman, the founder and former chief executive of Mellanox.

According to information from Calcalist, Srouji brings significant value to the table through his leadership of Apple’s silicon strategy. His work enabled the iPhone manufacturer to develop proprietary chips for its devices. However, critics note that his appointment as chief hardware officer occurred only in April 2026, meaning he has held that specific senior role for just over six months.

Eyal Waldman is also a serious candidate, as reported by Ynet. He co-founded Mellanox, an Israeli networking firm that NVIDIA acquired in 2020 for approximately $7 billion. His background as a former chief executive is seen as a potential advantage in navigating the complexities of leading a major global company.

The list of potential successors extends to other high-profile tech leaders. Rene Haas, the current CEO of Arm and a former NVIDIA executive, is reportedly under consideration. Additionally, Lisa Su, who leads NVIDIA’s direct competitor AMD, and Matt Garman, the CEO of Amazon Web Services, are among the outside names being discussed.

US President Donald Trump has also entered the conversation, publicly endorsing former Apple CEO Tim Cook for the position. In a social media post, Trump praised Huang’s tenure and declared that Cook was the only logical choice to take over, describing the transition as a legend replacing another legend.

A third Israeli figure, Michael Kagan, is also reportedly on the shortlist. Kagan serves as NVIDIA’s chief technology officer and co-founded Mellanox alongside Waldman. He has spent the last several years developing technology within NVIDIA, giving him established internal contacts and deep institutional knowledge.

The selection process has attracted significant attention from both political and business leaders, highlighting the critical nature of the leadership transition for the world’s most valuable chipmaker.