AIAC CHAIRMAN AT YALE CEO SUMMIT TO HONOR NVIDIA FOUNDER AND CEO JENSEN HUANG WITH LEGEND IN LEADERSHIP AWARD
New Haven, CT – June 8, 2025 – AIAC Chairman L. M. Levie will join more than 100 distinguished chief executives at the Yale CEO Summit on Tuesday, June 10 to honor Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA, who will receive the Yale Legend in Leadership Award. The virtual ceremony, hosted by Yale's Chief Executive Leadership Institute (CELI), recognizes Huang as one of the most transformative business leaders of our time.
The award, determined by unanimous vote of representatives from Yale and previous recipients, will be presented by an elite group of technology leaders including Marc Benioff, founder, chair and CEO of Salesforce, Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell Technologies, and Arvind Krishna, CEO of IBM.
Established 35 years ago, the Yale Legend in Leadership Award honors current and former CEOs who serve as living legends inspiring chief executives across all industries and nations. Huang joins an illustrious roster of previous recipients that includes:
Tim Cook (CEO, Apple), Larry Fink (Chair and CEO, BlackRock), Glenn Fogel (CEO, Booking Holdings), James Quincey (Chairman and CEO, The Coca-Cola Company), Marc Benioff (Founder, Chair and CEO, Salesforce), Mike Sievert (CEO, T-Mobile), Ajay Banga (President, The World Bank), Arvind Krishna (Chair and CEO, IBM), Steven Spielberg (Filmmaker and Chair, Amblin Partners), Darius Adamczyk (CEO, Honeywell), Volodymyr Zelenskyy (President of Ukraine), Doug Parker (Chairman, American Airlines), Albert Bourla (CEO, Pfizer), Alex Gorsky (CEO, Johnson & Johnson), Lynn Good (CEO, Duke Energy), Lisa Su (CEO, AMD), Dr. Anthony Fauci (Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases), Doug McMillon (CEO, Walmart), Arne Sorenson (CEO, Marriott International), Andrew J. Young (Former Mayor of Atlanta and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations), Brian C. Cornell (Chair and CEO, Target Corporation), Ivan G. Seidenberg (Chair and CEO, Verizon Communications), Ken Frazier (Chair and CEO, Merck & Co.), Randall L. Stephenson (Chairman and CEO, AT&T), Colin Powell (Retired Four-Star U.S. Army General and Former U.S. Secretary of State), Virginia M. Rometty (Former Chairman, President, and CEO, IBM Corporation), Janet Yellen (U.S. Secretary of the Treasury), Paul Polman (CEO, Unilever PLC), Mary T. Barra (Chairman and CEO, General Motors Company), Brian Moynihan (Chairman and CEO, Bank of America), David M. Rubenstein (Co-Founder and Co-Executive Chairman, The Carlyle Group), Leonard S. Schleifer (President and CEO, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals), George D. Yancopoulos (President and Chief Scientific Officer, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals), Brian Roberts (CEO, Comcast), Marillyn Hewson (CEO, Lockheed Martin), Jamie Dimon (CEO, JPMorgan Chase), and Ken Chenault (Chair and CEO, American Express).
Professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Senior Associate Dean for Leadership Studies at the Yale School of Management and summit organizer, praised Huang's unprecedented impact: "Jensen Huang is one of the most influential business leaders of our time — a visionary whose work has helped catalyze the global shift toward artificial intelligence. His accomplishments building NVIDIA are truly breathtaking, especially given the daunting odds the company first faced."
When Huang founded NVIDIA in 1993, advanced computing remained largely theoretical, with skeptical experts doubting the viability of the company's ambitious vision. Even after NVIDIA invented the GPU in 1999, many believed the technology would never transcend its niche gaming audience. Today, NVIDIA stands as the world's most valuable company by market capitalization, with revenues exploding from approximately $27 billion in fiscal 2023 to over $130 billion in fiscal 2025.
NVIDIA's accelerated computing platform now powers the most advanced AI models, transforming industries and impacting every aspect of society. The company's technologies continue to drive medical breakthroughs, democratize access to knowledge and opportunity, and accelerate economic growth worldwide.
AIAC Chairman L M. Levie commented, "AIAC is proud to support the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute and its mission of gathering the most accomplished corporate leaders of our time, discussing the critical issues of the day, and celebrating the outstanding CEO’s who both deliver for their shareholders and make the world a better place. Jensen Huang represents the pinnacle of innovation and leadership. His swift transformation of NVIDIA from a graphics company into the cornerstone of the AI revolution demonstrates the kind of bold, dynamic thinking and high velocity execution that defines legendary leadership.”
The Yale CEO Summit’s theme, "Is Your AI Horse Ahead of the Cart? Ensuring AI Developments Don't Outpace Your Strategic Advancements," reflects the critical importance of balanced AI implementation in today's rapidly evolving business landscape.
AIAC Chairman L. M. Levie, commented, “This Yale CEO Summit’s topic of discussion is both timely and critically important. AI isn't just transforming how we work at AIAC—it's revolutionizing how we serve our customers. By embedding artificial intelligence throughout our operations, we're creating state-of-the-art supply chains that think ahead, adapt instantly, and deliver with precision. When AI becomes the intelligence behind our commitment to quality, delivery, and value, we don't just meet expectations—we anticipate and exceed them at the speed of thought."
The Yale CEO Summit will take place virtually via Zoom on June 10, 2025, bringing together leaders from across industries to examine the strategic implications of artificial intelligence advancement.
For more information:
About Jensen Huang
Jensen Huang is the co-founder, president, and CEO of NVIDIA Corporation, one of the world's leading technology companies specializing in graphics processing units (GPUs) and artificial intelligence computing.
Born in Taiwan in 1963, Huang immigrated to the United States as a child. He earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Oregon State University in 1984 and a master's degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1992. Before founding NVIDIA, he worked at LSI Logic and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD).
In 1993, at age 30, Huang co-founded NVIDIA with Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem. The company initially focused on graphics chips for gaming but has since expanded into data centers, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, and professional visualization. Under Huang's leadership, NVIDIA has become a dominant force in the AI revolution, with its GPUs becoming essential for training large language models and other AI applications. The company's market capitalization has grown dramatically, making it one of the most valuable companies in the world.
Huang is known for his distinctive black leather jacket, which has become his signature look at tech conferences and presentations. He's recognized as a visionary leader who anticipated the importance of parallel computing and AI before these became mainstream trends. He has received numerous awards and honors, including being named to Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people. Under his leadership, NVIDIA has consistently been ranked among the best companies to work for.
Huang is known for his long-term thinking and willingness to make bold bets on emerging technologies, often investing in areas years before they become profitable or widely adopted. His strategic vision has positioned NVIDIA at the forefront of some of the most significant technological shifts of the past three decades.
For more information, please see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jensen_Huang
About the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute
The Chief Executive Leadership Institute (CELI) is the pioneer of CEO learning and hosts CEO Summits which bring together top business leaders and policy makers, as well as leading academics, in a unique learning environment that fosters candid, off-the-record exchanges among participants. The Yale Mayors College is a best-practices dialogue among municipal leaders in an off-the-record interactive setting, with participants sharing the steps they are taking to make their cities more livable. The Yale CEO Caucus is a semiannual roundtable for business leaders, political leaders, and scholars to discuss the business implications of urgent national and global events that span economics, diplomacy, security, energy, environment, regulation, and politics. The Yale Higher Education Leadership Summit brings together university presidents and board chairs, along with other top leadership, to discuss the higher education environment and key strategies to shape the future of colleges and universities in the U.S.
CELI is the world’s first school for CEOs, featuring applied research and peer-driven learning through lively exchanges among the world’s top business leaders, influential public policy makers, media opinion leaders, as well as foremost scholarly thought leaders, employing candid, confidential discussions of timely global business leadership challenges and compelling societal concerns.
For further information, please see:
https://som.yale.edu/centers/chief-executive-leadership-institute
About the Yale Legend in Leadership Award
The Yale Legend in Leadership Award was created 35 years ago to honor current and former CEOs who serve as living legends to inspire chief executives across industries, sectors, and nations. Recipients have included the following:
December 2024
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple
Larry Fink, Chair and CEO of BlackRock
September 2024
James Quincey, CEO of Coca Cola Corporation
June 2024
Marc Benioff, Founder, Chair & CEO, Salesforce
March 2024
Mike Sievert, President & CEO, T-Mobile
January 2024
Shirley Tilghman, 19th President, Princeton University
December 2023
Ajay Banga, President, World Bank Group
September 2023
Arvind Krishna, Chairman & CEO, IBM Corporation
June 2023
Steven Spielberg, Filmmaker & Chairman of Amblin Partners
March 2023
Kathy Warden, Chair, President & CEO, Northrop Grumman Corporation
January 2023
Hanna Holborn Gray, 10th President, University of Chicago
December 2022
Satya Nadella, Chairman & CEO, Microsoft
June 2022
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine
September 2022
Darius Adamczyk, Chairman & CEO, Honeywell
March 2022
W. Douglas Parker, CEO, American Airlines Group
December 2021
Albert Bourla, Chairman & CEO, Pfizer
Alex Gorsky, Chairman & CEO, Johnson & Johnson
September 2021
Lynn J. Good, CEO, Duke Energy
June 2021
Lisa Su, CEO, Advanced Micro Devices
March 2021
Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
December 2020
Doug McMillon, CEO, Walmart Corp.
September 2020
Arne M. Sorenson, CEO, Marriot International
June 2020
Brian C. Cornell, CEO, Target
December 2019
Randall L. Stephenson, CEO, AT&T
September 2019
Colin Powell, Retired Four-Star U.S. Army General; Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989–93), and 65th U.S. Secretary of State (2001–05)
June 2019
Virginia M. (Ginni) Rometty, Chairman, President & CEO, IBM Corporation
March 2019
Janet Yellen, Former Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
December 2018
Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever PLC
September 2018
Mary T. Barra, Chairman and CEO, General Motors Company
June 2018
Brian Moynihan, Chairman & CEO, Bank of America
March 2018
David M. Rubenstein, Co-Founder & Co-Executive Chairman, The Carlyle Group
December 2017
Leonard S. Schleifer, President & CEO, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
George D. Yancopoulos, President & Chief Scientific Officer, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
September 2017
Brian L. Roberts, Chairman & CEO, Comcast Corporation
June 2017
Ronald M. Shaich, Founder, Chairman & CEO, Panera Bread
December 2016
Terry J. Lundgren, Chairman & CEO, Macy’s, Inc.
September 2016
Marillyn A. Hewson, Chairman, President & CEO, Lockheed Martin Corporation
June 2016
Zhang Ruimin, Founder, Chairman & CEO, Haier Group
March 2016
Denise M. Morrison, President & CEO, Campbell Soup Company
December 2015
Kenneth C. Frazier, Chairman, President & CEO, Merck & Co.
September 2015
W. James McNerney, Chairman, The Boeing Company
June 2015
Ian M. Cook, Chairman, President & CEO, Colgate-Palmolive
March 2015
Lloyd C. Blankfein, Chairman & CEO, Goldman Sachs Group
Prior Winners
Klaus Kleinfeld, Chairman & CEO, Alcoa
JIANG Jianqing, Chairman, ICBC
GAO Xiqing, President & CIO, China Investment Corporation
D. Scott Davis, Chairman, UPS
Frank Blake, former Chairman & CEO, The Home Depot
Duncan L. Niederauer, former CEO, NYSE
Kenneth R. Feinberg, Managing Partner, Feinberg Rozen
Ellen J. Kullman, former Chairman & CEO, DuPont
David Stern, former Commissioner, National Basketball Associate
FU Chengyu, former Chairman, Sinopec
David M. Cote, Chairman & CEO, Honeywell International
Sir James Wolfensohn, Former President, World Bank Group
Jeffrey L. Bewkes, Chairman & CEO, Time Warner Inc.
Indra K. Nooyi, Chairman & CEO, PepsiCo
Jeffrey R. Immelt, Chairman & CEO, General Electric Company
Michael S. Dell, Chairman & CEO, Dell Inc.
Andrew Liveris, Chairman, President & CEO, The Dow Chemical Company
Kenneth Chenault, Chairman & CEO, American Express Company
Myron E. (Mike) Ullman, III, Chairman & CEO, JCPenney Company, Inc.
Alan Mullally, President & CEO, Ford Motor Company
Anne Mulcahy, Chairman, Xerox Corporation
Robert A. Iger, President & CEO, The Walt Disney Company
Ivan G. Seidenberg, Chairman & CEO, Verizon Communications
Jamie Dimon, Chairman & CEO, JPMorgan Chase
Louis V. Gerstner Jr., Former Chairman & CEO, IBM
Richard J. Harrington, Chairman & CEO, The Thomson Corporation
Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman & CEO, The Blackstone Group
Herbert V. Kohler Jr., Chairman, President & CEO, Kohler Company
Thomas G. Stemberg, Founder, Staples
Wilbur L. Ross Jr., Chairman & CEO, W.L. Ross & Company
Terry S. Semel, Chairman & CEO, Yahoo!
Ann M. Fudge, Chairman & CEO, Young & Rubicam
John E. Pepper Jr., Former Chairman & CEO, The Procter & Gamble Co.
Jack Valenti, Chairman & CEO, Motion Picture Association
Kenneth L. Wolfe, Former Chairman & CEO, The Hershey Company
John C. Bogle, Founder, The Vanguard Group
William W. George, Former Chairman & CEO, Medtronic
Roger A. Enrico, Former Chairman & CEO, PepsiCo
Nandan Nilekani, Co-founder, Infosys
Ratan Tata, Tata Group
About American Industrial Acquisition Corporation
American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) is a diversified industrial group with manufacturing and distribution sites in 24 countries in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia-New Zealand. AIAC has acquired and grown non-core subsidiaries and divisions of Boeing, Siemens, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Johnson Controls, Merck, Pfizer, Astellas, Visteon, Carlyle, Ahlstrom, Tolko, Groupe Suez, Groupe Rexel, and many other leading multinational corporations.
AIAC companies serve companies and governmental entities worldwide in all major sectors, including aviation, space, defense, automotive, truck, rail, marine, petrochemical, solar, nuclear, food, confectionary, beverage, civil engineering and infrastructure, commercial construction, mining, dredging, disaster relief, education, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. In addition, AIAC companies are exclusive, authorized distributors of leading branded industrial and consumer products and serve as critical suppliers for the construction of major airports, schools, hospitals, performing arts and sports centers, offices and hotels throughout Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. AIAC is a leading manufacturer of building, street, and highway signage in Europe, signage and illumination structures in North America, and a distributor of electrical products throughout France.
Of note, AIAC purchased Boeing Canada in 2005 and has produced over 10,000 unique components for every Boeing jet plane ever since, reliably serving Boeing from manufacturing facilities in North America. A leader in ultra-high precision jet engine component manufacturing, AIAC companies produce 2,200 fan blades for each jet engine produced by GE, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce, and Honeywell.
AIAC companies actively support exploration into outer space, manufacturing critical components for launching and propelling spacecraft and satellites. AIAC customers in this sector include NASA, the European Space Agency, SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Boeing. AIAC companies also lead in the design and manufacture of undersea umbilical cables for worldwide oceanographic research.
AIAC companies produce the critical automotive wire and cable for Tesla, GM, Ford, Chrysler-Fiat, Toyota, and Nissan. In connection with its kraft paper manufacturing interests in Canada and the US, AIAC controls and sustainably manages 22 million acres of Manitoba, Canada forestland, an area equivalent in size to the nation of Hungary. AIAC affiliate, Metallwarenfabrik Gemmingen GmbH, located in Germany, designs, manufactures and distributes high performance, emergency portable power generators utilized in global conflict zones and during natural disasters.
For further information, please see:
About AIAC Philanthropy
AIAC and the AIAC Foundation support a wide range of nonprofit, nonsectarian, bipartisan organizations which promote international conflict resolution, disaster relief, economic development, environmental sustainability, exploration, and the performing arts. The exploration-focused nonprofit organizations which they actively support include the Explorers Club, the National Geographic Society, the Royal Geographical Society, the American Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the National Air and Space Museum, the National Space Society, and the United States Space Foundation.
AIAC’s other beneficiaries include the Appeal of the Nobel Peace Laureates Foundation Inc., the Asia Society, the Atlantic Council, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - Gates Philanthropy Partners, the Bretton Woods Committee, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Carter Center, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York, the Foreign Policy Association, the Institut Française des Relations Internationales, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Crisis Group, the International Rescue Committee, the Japan Society, the JFK School of Government of Harvard University, the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), the Sierra Club, the Trilateral Commission, and the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute.
For further information, please see:
Media Contact:
Isabel Carro-Toro, Vice President
American Industrial Acquisition Corporation
+34 689 295 827 (Spain)
+ 1 787 244 3175 (USA)
icarro-toro@aiac.com