Trump backs Tim Cook as Jensen Huang's successor at Nvidia

President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Apple executive chairman Tim Cook should be Jensen Huang's successor at Nvidia. Trump made the call in a Truth Social post a few hours after Huang resigned as the chipmaker's chief executive, and he did not say whether Cook wants the job.

“NOW THAT Nvidia CEO JENSEN HUANG, who has done a fantastic job, has resigned, there is only one man to take his place - TIM COOK of Apple. A Legend replaces a Legend!”

— Donald Trump, President of the United States, Truth Social post

Quote source: Truth Social, Donald Trump's post, 12 November 2026.

Apple and Cook did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reuters reported. The choice belongs to Nvidia's board, which says it will weigh internal and external candidates and has named none. CFO Colette Kress runs the company as interim CEO, as we reported on Huang's resignation earlier today.

Why Cook's name came up

Cook ran Apple for 15 years and handed the CEO role to John Ternus on 1 September. As executive chairman he still leads Apple's work with policymakers and its relations with China, TechCrunch reported.

Trump was not the first to suggest him. On Wednesday Yale professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and two co-authors named Cook in a Time op-ed as one of two obvious outside choices, next to former Google chief Eric Schmidt. They wrote that Cook has "an unparalleled track record of succeeding a bigger-than-life founder" and pointed to Apple's market cap, which grew from about $350 billion to $4 trillion on his watch.

The same authors argued that Cook knows the Asian supply chain Nvidia's chips depend on. Their inside pick was Ian Buck, who runs Nvidia's hyperscale business.

Two CEOs who courted Trump

Huang backed much of the administration's agenda and lobbied to sell advanced chips to China. On Monday Trump said Huang had told him he did not know that the woman at the centre of the scandal was suspected of spying for Beijing.

Cook gave Trump a custom plaque last year to mark Apple's American manufacturing programme, Reuters noted. In 2019 Trump called him "Tim Apple" at a White House meeting.

In Washington, Republican senator Pete Ricketts said the resignation does not free Nvidia from a full investigation and raised concerns about China's access to US chips, Fox Business reported.

The shares

Nvidia stock won back part of its premarket loss. It traded near $166 around midday in New York, down about 4.5%, after dropping to roughly $155 before the open.

If you hold Nvidia, Kress's results call on Tuesday, 17 November, will tell you more about orders and guidance than any list of names for the top job. Expect more suggestions from outside the company before the board picks anyone.

The Cook candidacy is Trump's proposal; Nvidia, Apple and Cook have not confirmed any talks. This is news coverage and not investment advice.