Is Huida still Huida without Huang Renxun? Who can take the helm of the unique corporate governance model of US$4.3 trillion?

After Huang Renxun resigned as CEO of Huida, Huida's chief financial officer Colette Kress is currently taking over the position. Huang Renxun's extramarital affair and spy lover scandal also exposed Huida's governance vacuum. The media reported that Arm CEO Rene Haas Haas may succeed Huang Renxun. President Trump has suggested hiring former Apple CEO Cook, and entrepreneurs including Tesla CEO Musk have signed a petition to support Huang Renxun's return to Huida. It will be difficult to find a unique leader to replace Huang Renxun in the future.

Compared with other leading large technology companies, Huida's annual report and corporate governance documents do not specifically mention "succession planning" or detail how the company will replace its CEO even in an emergency, noting only that the company "believes in broad-based leadership development."

The $4.3 trillion chip giant has no chairman and no succession plan. As chipmaker Huida's stock price has soared over the past five years, its unique operating model has not attracted much attention from investors. Now, these unique operating models have raised questions about the board’s ability to oversee the company and whether it can lead Huida through a crisis that could affect the entire artificial intelligence economy.

According to the 2024 disclosure, Huang has an unusually large number of direct reports, more than 60 people, which recent documents show provides Huida's board with "a pool of excellent candidates for future promotions."

Huida's board of directors differs from other large U.S. companies in that it does not have a designated chairman. Fenwick Law Firm's 2025 report shows that only one S&P 100 company does not have a chairman, and this company is Huida. Huida said in its proxy filing that the arrangement "ensures that each member has an equal say in the affairs and management of Huida."

Huida, a company with 42,000 employees, generated an average of more than $7 million in annual revenue per employee in the past 12 months, far more than any other large technology company. Huang is also the company's "single point of failure" as he serves as the head of marketing, sales and product development.

Huang’s influence on the broader technology industry is also unique. For example, Huang's endorsement of artificial intelligence semiconductor supply chain companies can significantly boost their stock prices, while his flippant dismissal of quantum computing's near-term business prospects early last year caused stocks in the industry to plummet.

Bernstein analysts said that Huida is not an ordinary company and Huang Renxun is not an ordinary CEO, adding that this uncertainty will continue for some time.

Yahoo Finance reported that from all aspects, Huang Renxun’s behavior is in line with the typical characteristics of super-rich founders and CEOs. They think they will continue doing it forever and will not slow down at all. For these people, succession planning is often the least important thing.

But all this must change for Huida, and Huida must change quickly given that Huang has pushed the company into a crisis that has made changes visible to the investment community around the world. Investors who have supported Huang for years deserve to know what will happen if Huida's core figures are removed from within the company. Without Huang Renxun in charge, Huida's expectations for the next ten years will change dramatically.