Why Jensen Huang Was Essential to Nvidia’s Rise

Jensen Huang was the driving force at Nvidia, with 60 direct reports and no clear succession plan. Tripp Mickle, one of our technology reporters, examines Mr. Huang’s central role in the company and the artificial intelligence industry.

By Tripp Mickle, Gilad Thaler, Thomas Vollkommer, Shawn Paik, Nikolay Nikolov, James Surdam, Rafaela Balster, June Kim and Mark Oltmanns

November 13, 2026