Colette Kress
Colette Kress | |
|---|---|
 Kress in 2017 | |
| Born | 1967 (age 58–59) |
| Education | |
| Occupations | Financial analyst and business executive |
| Organization | CFO of Nvidia (since 2013) |
| Known for | Chief Financial Officer of Nvidia |
Colette Kress (born 1967) is an American financial analyst and business executive who has served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Nvidia since 2013. She previously served as the Chief Financial Officer of Cisco's Business Technology and Operations Finance Section and of Microsoft's Server and Tools Division. She has been a billionaire since July 2025.
Early years and education
[edit]Kress earned a Bachelors of Science in Finance from the University of Arizona and an MBA from the Southern Methodist University Cox School of Business.[1]
Career
[edit]She started her career by rising to the rank of Chief Financial Officer of Microsoft's Server and Tools Division and then of Cisco's Business Technology and Operations Finance Section.[2]
Kress joined Nvidia as CFO after a two-year search in September 2013, where she was seen as unlikely to cause a significant change in the company's core business of selling graphics chips but was seen as a potential support for the expansion to tablets and computers.[3] At this point, Nvidia was the smallest company she had worked for.[4][5]
In 2018, during the Bank of America Global Tech Conference, Kress stated that despite the reduction in crypto, autonomous vehicles and gaming would drive the remaining demand.[6]
She has been seen as instrumental in Nvidia's rapid rise to prominence during the rise of Artificial Intelligence.[7] As the company has rapidly grown, she has led the digitization effort of manual processes.[8] She has continually discussed the importance of AI and its growth.[9][4]
She has helped direct Nvidia's many investments in other companies,[10] and spoke publicly about the discussions between OpenAI and Nvidia for investments.[11] She has also worked on Nvidia's "matchmaking" efforts to support customers for other needs such as data center space.[12]
Wealth and recognition
[edit]She was first ranked as a billionaire on July 29, 2025, making her one of the few CFOs to become billionaires.[13][14]
She was included as a 2024 winner of The New Era in Business in Chief.[15] She was ranked as #49 on Fortune's Most Powerful Women list in 2026.[2] She was ranked as #37 on Forbes's Most Powerful Women list in 2025 and #32 on Forbes's Richest Self-Made Women list in 2026.[16] She was included in the MarketWatch 50 in 2023 as an AI Player.[17]
References
[edit]- ↑ John, Steven. "Who is Colette Kress? Meet the Nvidia CFO who has overseen the chipmaker's meteoric rise". Business Insider. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- 1 2 "Colette Kress | 2026 Most Powerful Women". Fortune. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "Chipmaker Nvidia hires CFO, ends two-year search". Reuters. September 16, 2013.
- 1 2 Estrada, Sheryl. "Nvidia CFO Colette Kress: 'AI is no longer a nice-to-have'". Fortune. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ Estrada, Sheryl. "Nvidia's CFO on how they retain tech talent —even as the Great Resignation continues". Fortune. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "Nvidia CFO: Crypto 'is a small portion of our business'". TheStreet. Archived from the original on 2022-12-05. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ Adamczyk, Alicia; Ajemian, Nina. "Nvidia smashed earnings expectations. Thank Colette Kress". Fortune. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ Estrada, Sheryl. "Nvidia's CFO has been 'instrumental' in success and 'key to Jensen's vision,' top analyst says". Fortune. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ Kim, Tae. "Nvidia's CFO Sees 'Tremendous' Demand for AI. She's Upbeat About the Year". barrons. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ Leswing, Kif (2025-12-04). "Nvidia has a cash problem — too much of it". CNBC. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "Nvidia CFO says chipmaker yet to finalize $100 billion OpenAI deal". Yahoo Finance. Archived from the original on 2026-01-01. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ radhikanadig@benzinga.com (2026-06-05). "Nvidia Turns Matchmaker as AI Companies Scramble for Data Center Space and Electricity - NVIDIA (NASDAQ:N". Benzinga. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "Nvidia's CFO crosses billion-dollar net worth mark | CFO.com". www.cfo.com. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "Nvidia's Billionaire Ranks Expand to Include CFO, Sales Chief". Bloomberg. July 29, 2025. Retrieved June 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Colette Kress". The New Era of Leadership. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "Colette Kress". Forbes. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
- ↑ "The MarketWatch 50 - Colette Kress - MarketWatch". MarketWatch. Retrieved 2026-06-19.
