Who is Colette Kress? Nvidia's finance chief steps in as interim CEO after Huang exit

Nvidia CFO Colette Kress, a 13-year company veteran, is taking the helm of the world's most valuable chipmaker on an interim basis after Jensen Huang's sudden resignation.

"She's the only one internally that has this significant respect," Dan Ives, an analyst at Yorkville Ives & Co., told CNBC before the news had been made official. "She's more than just a CFO. I'd almost view her as more of a COO."

Nvidia hasn't announced a succession plan and said the board is considering internal and external candidates.

Kress joined Nvidia in September 2013, after holding finance roles at Cisco , Microsoft and Texas Instruments . At Nvidia, Kress has been the other big voice on earnings calls, reporting the company's results and taking questions alongside Huang.

"NVIDIA's strength has always come from its people, and together with our leadership team, I am committed to building on the extraordinary foundation Jensen created over the last 33 years," Kress said in Thursday's statement . "We will continue advancing the work that has made NVIDIA a leader in accelerated computing and AI, and execute on the opportunities ahead. Our focus remains on serving our customers, partners, developers and shareholders."

Huang, who co-founded Nvidia in 1993, was known for running the company with no clear second-in-command, personally deciding which projects are a priority and emailing engineers about details.

But when it came to Kress, "Jensen didn't do anything without her," Ives said. "She's a Swiss Army knife for Nvidia. Anything strategically: customers, partners, technology. She was involved."

CNBC spoke to nearly a dozen Nvidia insiders and former Kress co-workers. They described her as savvy, knowledgeable, thoughtful and clear-headed.

Kress is stepping in at a moment of crisis. Huang has operated as Nvidia's spokesperson, the face of the company and as a founder who is synonymous with the brand. He also pioneered the AI chip industry, making him the central figure in the multitrillion-dollar boom that's driving the U.S. economy.

Kress "deeply understands the business and has shown fierce loyalty to the company," Daniel Newman, CEO of Futurum Group, wrote in a message to CNBC.

Nvidia shares plunged 14% on Thursday after the announcement. The stock is poised for its sixth straight weekly drop, the longest slump since 2012. The shares have been dragged down by broad concerns about the AI buildout, particularly after the midterm elections, which resulted in sweeping victories for Democrats.

The Huang saga burst into public view on Sunday, when the CEO apologized for being unfaithful to his wife. That followed reports that he'd had an affair with Alice Huang, a Chinese businesswoman whom U.S. intelligence suspects was a spy. Pressure intensified late Wednesday after The New York Times reported a second affair, this one with an employee named Kimberly Powell.

Kress was recognized in May as one of Fortune's most powerful women in business. Her LinkedIn profile lists her location as Saratoga, California, a wealthy city 16 miles south of Nvidia's Santa Clara headquarters.

As for the long-term leadership plan, Ives said Kress will likely serve for about a year as interim CEO but the permanent replacement will come from outside the company.

"You need someone that's been on the global stage," Ives said. "Given the importance of the company not just in the U.S. tech industry but the global economy."

— CNBC's Seema Mody and Jordan Novet contributed to this report