Nvidia began a formal search for a new chief executive on Wednesday after co-founder Jensen Huang resigned "effective immediately," and the field of potential successors already stretches from the company's own engineering bench to a former Apple CEO endorsed by President Donald Trump.

The board moved within hours. It named Colette Kress, executive vice president and chief financial officer, as interim CEO until a permanent successor takes over, according to the board's statement.

The resignation landed three days after Huang admitted to an affair and as Nvidia's board opened an investigation into whether he was the "target of a foreign intelligence effort." Analysts, investors and prediction-market bettors have since begun building their candidate lists.

Who are the leading internal candidates?

Two names dominate. Reuters reported that analysts and investors view Ian Buck, Nvidia's vice president of hyperscale and high-performance computing, as a serious contender. Prediction markets agree: Buck tops the lists on both Kalshi and Polymarket.

Josh Gilbert, a lead analyst at eToro, told Reuters: "The permanent job is a different story, though, because Nvidia's edge comes from its technology, and the board would likely want an engineer in the chair." He added: "Someone like Ian Buck, who led the software platform that keeps developers tied to Nvidia's chips, is the sort of internal name you'd expect to come up."

Kress herself could keep the job. Reuters reported that analysts and investors also see the interim chief as a candidate for the permanent role.

Armina Rosenberg, a cofounder at Minotaur Capital, which owns Nvidia stock, told Reuters the search will not be quick. "The more realistic route is an interim leader from the long-serving inner circle, possibly as a co-CEO structure: one leader to steady the business and the finances, such as Colette Kress, alongside a product and technology leader, such as Ian Buck," she said.

Which outside executives are in the frame?

The Financial Times reported on Wednesday that Nvidia has approached Rene Haas, CEO of semiconductor firm Arm Holdings. Sources told the newspaper it is not guaranteed Haas will be offered the role or accept it. Haas knows the company well: he previously served as vice president and general manager of Nvidia's computing products business unit for seven years.

A person familiar with the matter told Semafor that Johny Srouji, senior vice president of hardware technology at Apple, is being considered for the role.

Dan Ives, a partner and senior managing director at Yorkville Ives & Co., named two external candidates in an interview with Fortune. The first is Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian, who joined Google in 2019 after working at Oracle and McKinsey. The second is Palo Alto Networks CEO Nikesh Arora, whom Ives said is on his list. Separately, an Nvidia shareholder told The Economic Times that Arora ranks among his top picks to replace Huang.

What did Trump say about Tim Cook?

President Donald Trump weighed in on Thursday with a recommendation of his own: former Apple CEO Tim Cook. Cook stepped down as Apple CEO in September but remains executive chairman.

"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!" Trump wrote on Truth Social.

What happens next?

The candidate list spans two internal executives, four outside CEOs and senior operators, and one presidential endorsement. The board has set no public timeline for its decision.

For now, Kress runs the company.