Nvidia shares fell nearly 9% in after-hours trading Wednesday as reports emerged that the company's board had convened to discuss the future of CEO Jensen Huang following revelations about his personal relationships and alleged links to a Chinese intelligence operation.

Two people familiar with the matter told NBC News that the board was examining Huang's position during a meeting scheduled for Wednesday evening. A source also told the network that the White House was aware of the discussions. The Wall Street Journal first reported the meeting, citing people familiar with the matter.

The New York Times reported, citing five former Nvidia employees, that Huang had maintained a relationship with a woman who reported directly to him. The report also raised questions about his alleged relationship with another woman suspected of being a Chinese intelligence operative. NBC News said it had not independently verified the Times' reporting.

Allegations surrounding Huang raise questions over leadership

Huang acknowledged in a message to employees Sunday that he had been "unfaithful to his wife," without providing further details about the circumstances. NBC News separately reported that US intelligence agencies had determined that Alice Huang, the woman linked to the Nvidia chief, was a Chinese intelligence operative.

Beijing rejected the allegations, calling them "purely unsubstantiated and directed at smearing China."

Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, an expert on corporate governance and executive leadership and senior associate dean for leadership studies at Yale School of Management, recognized Huang's contributions to the technology industry but argued that Nvidia's board should remove him from his position.

Huang "has lost his legitimacy to lead internally in the eyes of the company, and he's lost his external credibility in the eyes of key constituents, including customers," Sonnenfeld told NBC News.

Potential leadership change raises concerns over Nvidia's future

Huang has led Nvidia since founding the company in 1993, building it from a graphics processing chip manufacturer into a technology giant valued at more than $4 trillion. Its processors have become central to the development of artificial intelligence systems, supplying leading companies including OpenAI and Anthropic.

The company's position has made Huang a central figure in the global AI industry, which has attracted trillions of dollars in investment from major technology companies. His potential departure has therefore raised concerns about the consequences for Nvidia's business and the broader technology sector.

Longtime semiconductor analyst Stacy Rasgon warned Monday that removing Huang could create substantial challenges for the company. "NVIDIA is not an ordinary company and Jensen is not an ordinary CEO; he IS NVIDIA," Rasgon wrote. "The primary beneficiary of Jensen's removal as NVIDIA's CEO would clearly be China."

Rasgon also pointed to the broader implications of the revelations, writing in a note that "It brings the stewardship of one of America's most important companies, and the architect of the US AI trajectory, under debate."

Nvidia selloff spreads across semiconductor sector

The decline in Nvidia shares extended to other major chipmakers, with Intel, Qualcomm and ARM Holdings also recording losses in after-hours trading. The broader semiconductor sector came under pressure as investors reacted to uncertainty surrounding Nvidia's leadership.

As of 9:40 p.m. ET Wednesday, Nasdaq futures were also trading lower, signaling potential losses for US technology stocks when markets reopened Thursday. If Nvidia's decline persists through the opening bell, the company stands to lose more than $350 billion in market value.

The developments have also attracted attention from US lawmakers, particularly given Nvidia's central role in the country's AI industry and the strategic importance of advanced semiconductor exports. The concerns come as China seeks to close the technological gap with the United States, with President Xi Jinping setting 2030 as a deadline for Chinese companies to match or exceed the capabilities of American AI systems.

US lawmakers seek preservation of records on Nvidia-China ties

On Wednesday evening, Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Chris Coons of Delaware announced that they had written to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, requesting the preservation of government records concerning Nvidia's advanced AI chip exports to China.

"We write to request that the Department of Commerce, the Department of State, and the White House preserve all documents, communications, records, and other materials regarding the export of NVIDIA's advanced AI chips to China or to entities that may divert such chips to China," the senators said.

They also requested that "all records and materials specifically related to this reported intelligence operation" involving Huang and the Chinese business executive be preserved. The lawmakers said the developments raised concerns about the enforcement of US export restrictions and national security safeguards.

"This incident raises significant concerns about the federal government's ability to effectively enforce our export controls and protect our national security," Warren and Coons wrote.

Trump expected to discuss AI and trade with Xi

The lawmakers' request comes ahead of President Donald Trump's planned trip to Asia for meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Trump is widely expected to meet Xi during the visit, marking their third meeting this year.

The timing has added attention to the developments surrounding Nvidia, given the company's importance to US technological competitiveness and the restrictions governing exports of advanced AI processors to China.

Asked during a White House briefing this week whether Huang might accompany him on the trip, as he had during an earlier visit to Beijing, Trump said: "I don't know, but I'd certainly take him."