In a leaked all-hands meeting this week, Nvidia Corp. CEO Jensen Huang laid bare the company’s precarious position amid surging AI hype and Wall Street skepticism. Despite delivering what Huang called an “incredible quarter”—with fiscal third-quarter revenue soaring 62% to $57 billion, handily beating analyst expectations—the chipmaker’s shares tumbled more than 4% in after-hours trading following the earnings release. “The market did not appreciate our incredible quarter,” Huang told employees, according to details reported by Fortune.

Huang’s candid remarks, which surfaced via an internal meeting leak, underscore a deepening paradox for Nvidia: blockbuster results that would have ignited rallies in a less feverish market now fuel fears of an AI investment bubble. The company’s data-center revenue, the lifeblood of its AI dominance, jumped 91% year-over-year to $50.5 billion, driven by unrelenting demand for its Blackwell GPUs from hyperscalers like Microsoft Corp. and Amazon.com Inc. Yet investors, wary of overcapacity and diminishing returns on AI infrastructure, punished the stock, erasing billions in market value.

This no-win dynamic has Huang framing Nvidia as caught in a vise. Strong earnings stoke bubble concerns; any sign of softening demand would shatter confidence in the AI megatrend Nvidia has come to embody.

Huang’s Internal Plea to Staff

During the meeting, Huang didn’t mince words about the stock’s slide. “We are in a no-win situation,” he said, per Business Insider, which detailed how Nvidia’s record performance failed to move the needle for shareholders amid broader market jitters. Huang emphasized the company’s role in sustaining global AI momentum, warning that a weak quarter could have “broken everything”—a nod to Nvidia’s status as the barometer for the $1 trillion-plus AI infrastructure spend.

The CEO’s frustration echoes sentiments from the earnings call, where he rejected bubble talk outright. “We see something very different,” Huang told analysts, arguing that AI represents a genuine productivity revolution akin to the PC and internet eras, as covered by CNBC. He pointed to a three-pronged defense: exploding demand from sovereign AI initiatives, enterprise adoption, and the shift to inference workloads that could double Nvidia’s addressable market.

Internally, Huang rallied the troops by highlighting Nvidia’s “incredible” execution, including gross margins holding steady at 75.5% despite production ramps for next-gen chips.

Decoding the Earnings Beat

Nvidia’s Q3 results, released November 19, showcased the staying power of its GPU franchise. Revenue hit $57.04 billion, surpassing estimates of $55.3 billion, while earnings per share of $0.89 topped forecasts of $0.84. Data-center sales, now 88% of total revenue, reflected hyperscaler capex commitments totaling over $300 billion annually, per company disclosures. Blackwell shipments began in Q3, with full production slated for Q4, positioning Nvidia to capture inference workloads that Huang predicts will eclipse training in scale.

Yet the beat wasn’t enough to quell fears. Analysts like those at Rosenblatt Securities noted guidance for Q4 revenue at $60 billion (±2%)—implying 64% growth—but flagged risks from U.S. export curbs to China, which shaved $4.5 billion from prior quarters. Nvidia’s stock, down 20% from September peaks, trades at 45 times forward earnings, a premium that invites scrutiny amid OpenAI’s Sam Altman’s warnings of an “AI infrastructure overhang.”

Wall Street’s Bubble Obsession

The selloff reflects a broader reassessment of AI economics. Investors question whether Big Tech’s $1 trillion data-center buildout—projected by Nvidia to reach $2 trillion by 2028—will yield returns justifying the spend. Huang countered in the earnings call, stating, “We excel at every phase of AI,” citing partnerships with 100 sovereign AI nations and robotics firms, as reported by The Guardian.

Skeptics, however, point to cooling GPU order growth. Bank of America estimates hyperscalers have stockpiled enough H100s for two years of training needs, shifting focus to costlier Blackwell. Huang dismissed this, noting inference demand could consume 100% of current capacity annually, per Reuters.

On X, sentiment mirrors the divide: Nvidia’s official account touted TOP500 supercomputer dominance (78% powered by its tech), while users debated bubble risks post-earnings.

Huang’s Vision Beyond the Bubble

Huang’s leaked comments reveal a CEO acutely aware of Nvidia’s totemic role. “Nvidia saved the world,” he quipped in the meeting, per The Economic Times, underscoring how its chips underpin global AI leadership. He outlined a roadmap through Rubin and Feynman architectures, promising annual innovation cycles to sustain moats in CUDA software and NVLink interconnects.

Geopolitics looms large. U.S. restrictions cost $8 billion in Q3, yet Huang pivoted to Mexico and UAE fabs via partners like Foxconn. Long-term, he envisions AI agents and physical AI driving a “new industrial revolution,” with Nvidia’s Omniverse platform enabling digital twins for robotics.

Quantifying the No-Win Dilemma

From a valuation lens, Nvidia’s $3.2 trillion market cap—rivaling Apple Inc.’s—hinges on 40%+ CAGR through 2028. Consensus forecasts $120 billion FY2026 revenue, but misses on China or inference monetization could trigger derating. Huang’s trap: Exceed expectations, and bubble fears intensify; guide conservatively, and growth narrative crumbles, as Tom’s Hardware analyzed.

Competitive pressures mount from AMD Inc.’s MI350 and custom ASICs by Google and Meta Platforms Inc., though Nvidia’s ecosystem lock-in—evident in 85% of TOP100 HPC systems using its GPUs—provides buffer. Huang stressed in the meeting that “the market did not appreciate” this entrenchment.

Posts on X from industry watchers highlighted Huang’s all-hands as a rare peek into executive angst, amplifying discussions on AI sustainability.

Strategic Roadmap Ahead

Looking to Q4 and beyond, Nvidia eyes $60 billion revenue, with Blackwell Ultra ramping in 2026. Huang’s pitch: AI isn’t frothy but at a “tipping point,” transforming sectors from drug discovery to autonomous vehicles, as per LiveMint. Sovereign deals, like Saudi Arabia’s $40 billion cluster, diversify revenue.

The leaked meeting serves as a wake-up call: Nvidia must prove AI’s ROI while navigating sky-high expectations. Huang’s resolve—bolstered by a 3.6% employee ownership stake—signals no retreat.

For industry insiders, the real story isn’t the bubble debate but Nvidia’s grip on computing’s future, even as Wall Street tests its nerve.