Nvidia’s board of directors opened an internal investigation into CEO Jensen Huang on Monday, after reports surfaced that he had a personal relationship with Alice Huang, a Chinese businesswoman alleged to have ties to Chinese intelligence. The announcement coincided with pre‑market trading, where Nvidia stock fell about 4%, and broader US equity futures quickly erased roughly $300 billion in market value, according to CoinCentral.

Impact on US equity futures

Futures for the major US indexes moved in mixed directions after the probe was disclosed. Dow Jones futures rose between 0.6% and 0.8%, S&P 500 futures gained roughly 0.3%–0.4%, while Nasdaq‑100 futures were near flat, with one report noting a 0.2% dip to 27,112.25 points. The rapid swing in S&P 500 futures reflected the market’s sensitivity to the news, erasing an implied $300 billion in market cap within minutes, as highlighted by a tweet from the Kobeissi Letter.

Broader market context

The probe comes as US stock markets recover from a week of losses, with the Nasdaq Composite having risen 1.1% on Friday but still ending the week lower. Investors are also weighing the potential for a December Federal Reserve rate hike, which market pricing now places at an 80% probability, according to the CME FedWatch tool. Upcoming macro data includes October’s consumer price index on Tuesday and producer price index figures on Friday.

Upcoming earnings and AI sector focus

Nvidia’s situation adds to a busy earnings calendar for AI‑related companies. CoreWeave, a cloud‑computing provider tied to AI workloads, is set to report on Tuesday, followed by Applied Materials and Cisco on Thursday. Analysts note that the performance of these firms could influence sentiment toward the broader AI sector, which has already seen heightened volatility after Nvidia’s share decline.

What to watch next

The next few days will be pivotal: watch Nvidia’s stock reaction once the board releases further details on the probe, monitor the CPI and PPI releases for clues on inflation trends, and track earnings from CoreWeave, Applied Materials and Cisco for any spillover effects on AI‑related equities and related crypto markets.