NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang Backs California Wealth Tax

NVIDIA Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang says he has no plans to move the company from California as discussions about a wealth reform bill gain momentum in the state.

A one-time 5% wealth tax led by the SEIU United Healthcare Workers West union is being proposed by California lawmakers. The measure would impose larger taxes on the state's ultra-wealthy residents.

Several tech leaders in California are planning to relocate operations to Florida. Meta Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg and Google Co-Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin are among those looking to take advantage of the southern state's lower tax rate.

However, Jensen says he has no intention of moving NVIDIA from California.

Talent pool drives location choice

"I say to everybody, 'Move to California, don't leave.' It's the highest taxes in the world, but it's okay," Jensen says, speaking to US Congressman Ro Khanna at the Stanford Graduate School of Business on 16 April.

Jensen told Bloomberg on 6 January that NVIDIA operates in California's Silicon Valley because "that's where the talent pool is." He says he was not concerned about the wealth tax and was focused on building "the future of AI."

Jensen says he was "perfectly fine" with the proposed tax in the interview with Bloomberg. He adds that he was comfortable paying any additional taxes required of NVIDIA.

The proposed tax has not yet qualified for the ballot. The measure would impose a one-time 5% tax on the assets of billionaires, including stocks, art, businesses, collectables and intellectual property.

Financial impact on executives

The tax would apply retroactively to billionaire residents of California as of 1 January. The funds would backfill federal funding cuts to health services that were signed by President Trump in 2025.

At a net worth of  US$174bn, Jensen is currently the eighth richest person in the world.

According to a report by SFGATE, the proposed law would require him to pay an estimated annual sum of US$8bn in taxes.

If paid, Jensen would be left with a remaining net worth of more than US$150bn. This amount exceeds the GDP of many countries worldwide.

Several others in NVIDIA's C-suite would also be impacted by the proposed tax. In July, NVIDIA Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress, Executive Vice President of World Field Operations Jay Puri and other large shareholders saw their wealth increase to more than US$1bn, according to calculations by the Bloomberg Billionaire's Index.

Tax debate splits Democrats

This followed a 35% rise in market share price in 2025.

California has more billionaires than any other state. Nearly half the state's personal income tax revenue comes from the top 1% of earners, according to state data. This forms a financial backbone in its nearly US$350bn budget.

The proposed tax has created rifts within the US Democratic Party. Californian Governor Gavin Newsom suggests the bill could harm the US economy.

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has long supported a bill of its kind. In a 2019 post on X, he states: "At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, the richest people in our country must start paying their fair share of taxes."

Business groups oppose measure

The California Business Roundtable is leading the effort to combat the tax. The committee has received donations from billionaires including Larry Page and Peter Thiel.

In a company statement, the organisation claimed the tax would "undermine our economy, decimate the state budget, drive investment out of the state and ultimately make everyday life more expensive for working families."

Suzanne Jimenez, Chief of Staff at SEIU United Healthcare Workers West, says the tax is a "workable response to a crisis created by Congress" in a statement. She adds that it would "keep emergency rooms open, hospitals staffed and healthcare systems functioning."