Nvidia has moved its entire annual shareholder meeting into a full-scale replica of a suburban kitchen, built over six weeks on a cleared lot beside its Santa Clara headquarters, the company confirmed on Monday. Every investor, analyst and board member must now stand at the counter for the duration of the session, which the company says will last as long as it takes to reach a consensus on the matter at hand.
Chief executive Jensen Huang said the decision reflected the company's commitment to transparency. «We have nothing to hide in our kitchen,» he told reporters, before walking the length of the room to open a cabinet that contained only a single cup of coffee. The construction crew, which included 340 carpenters, electricians and plasterers, reportedly worked in shifts around the clock to match the layout of a private residence described in earlier reporting, down to the placement of the refrigerator and the height of the window above the sink.
Investor relations staff have since been reassigned to a permanent rota of kitchen duties, including meal preparation for attendees, and the company's legal department has been ordered to conduct all future correspondence over a shared countertop. Nvidia's share price fell 6 per cent in pre-market trading as analysts struggled to locate the agenda, which was found taped inside the oven door on Monday afternoon. The company said the meeting will resume on Thursday, weather permitting, and that the coffee machine will remain switched on.