[Curiosity Lab] Nvidia Tattoo on Arm 10 Years Ago... Why Jensen Huang Cried Heavily

Jensen Huang leading Nvidia
Photo by Nvidia

The stock price is eyeing $1,000, and the market capitalization is a staggering $3 trillion, aiming to be number one?NVIDIA. On the shoulders of Jensen Huang, who has continuously led this company, there is a tattoo of the NVIDIA logo. Huang revealed his tattoo at the NVIDIA Gaming Festival on October 25, 2014. At that time, the tattoo was done with executives to commemorate the stock price surpassing $100 ahead of the new trading session on Monday following a stock split. Someone asked, "What will you do if the stock price surpasses $100?" Various opinions came up, such as shaving his head, dyeing his hair, or getting a Mohawk, and Huang chose to get a tattoo. He got the tattoo while his family watched. In a 2017 interview with Fortune, Huang shared an after-story about the tattoo. "I really wanted to postpone it. I was crying like a baby. I told my kids, ‘Dad is enduring it.’" In a 2023 interview, Huang said, "I want to age gracefully. I will not get any more tattoos. It hurts much more than people say."

In October 2014, Jensen Huang is showing a tattoo of the company logo on his forearm at the NVIDIA Gaming Festival.
[Photo by NVIDIA Official Instagram Account]

Commemorating $100 per share with a corporate logo tattoo on the forearm... Declares he will never do it again

NVIDIA stock, which was $100 per share, traded at $4.62 per share after the stock split. If you had invested $1,000 at that time, you could have bought 215.45 shares of NVIDIA stock. On the 22nd (local time), NVIDIA announced its Q1 earnings and a plan for a 1-for-10 stock split. The current stock price was around $950 per share. If you had spent $1,000 ten years ago to buy 215.45 shares, the current value would be $200,000, a 200-fold increase. If Huang had said ten years ago what he would do at a $1,000 stock price and chose a tattoo, it would be worth tattooing his entire body. However, according to Huang’s past words, tattoos are too painful and not a suitable choice for someone who wants to age beautifully and gracefully.

Even in the free-spirited United States, it is unusual for a famous CEO to openly promote tattoos. Although there is no official confirmation (they might have tattoos in places not visible), among current CEOs leading big tech or famous companies, none openly boast about tattoos. This is true for Apple founder the late Steve Jobs, Tesla’s Elon Musk, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Meta (Facebook’s parent company) Mark Zuckerberg, Alphabet (Google’s parent company) founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Many people have tattoos of their faces or company logos, but it is not known that these CEOs themselves have tattoos.

Photo of Jack Dorsey during his time as Twitter CEO (left) and currently (right, X account profile picture). Below is the tattoo on Jack Dorsey's arm.

There have been some who became famous for their tattoos. Jack Dorsey, former CEO of Twitter (now X), has a large S-shaped tattoo on his left forearm. It symbolizes the F hole of a violin and essential symbols of calculus. In his 20s, he had a nose piercing but did not have it during his corporate career. Currently, his X account profile picture shows a photo with the piercing. However, netizens say, "How do we know they have nothing (tattoos)? Bill Gates might have a Windows icon on his forearm, Steve Jobs might have one of the Apple logos behind his shoulder, and Mark Zuckerberg might have the Facebook theme with a ‘Like’ icon tattooed that we can never see."

Tattooed billionaires and businesspeople are rare even in the U.S.

Kimari Yowell, one of the top executives at Rocket, a fintech company headquartered in Detroit, is a Black woman. Recently, at a company celebration event, she wore a dress, and everyone was surprised to see tattoos on her arms, shoulders, and back. Although the company does not have a policy banning visible tattoos, she had implicitly hidden her tattoos in daily life. That day was an occasion for her to come out about her tattoos herself.

Photo of Marcelo Cataldo, CEO of Digicel, who recently gained attention for his forearm tattoo. This photo was taken by his daughter. Photo by Digicel

Digicel, a telecommunications and entertainment company headquartered in Jamaica, also became a topic of conversation recently after appointing Marcelo Cataldo as CEO. In a photo posted on social media, he is sitting on a chair wearing a red T-shirt and jeans, with his arms covered in tattoos. The photo was reportedly taken by his daughter. The 52-year-old Paraguayan said, "Diversity, equity, and inclusion are really important issues," and "You can choose whatever you want?hair color, piercings, tattoos, sexual orientation, religion. That’s part of who we are." His tattoos became a topic because, unlike other sectors, tattoos are considered taboo in the global business world.

Looking at the 2018 statistics from Dalia Research, headquartered in Berlin, which surveyed 9,054 people across 18 countries, the percentage of respondents who said they have some form of tattoo was highest in Italy at 48%, followed by Sweden (47%), the U.S. (46%), Australia (43%), Argentina (43%), Spain (42%), Denmark (41%), and the U.K. (40%), all exceeding 40%. Brazil (37%), France (36%), Germany (36%), Greece (35%), South Africa (33%), Russia (33%), Canada (33%), Mexico (32%), Turkey (30%), and Israel (25%) followed. The average across the 18 countries was 38%. In these countries, public perception of tattoos is akin to wearing different clothes or hats.

Italy leads at 48%, major countries average 38%... South Korea estimated at 25%

Overseas, tattoos are not considered medical procedures. In contrast, in South Korea, tattoos stand at the boundary between law and custom. Ordinary people get tattoos from tattoo artists or beauty salons, but it is technically illegal because non-medical tattooing is prohibited. It is said that 2 million people receive tattoo procedures annually, and according to data submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare to the National Assembly Legislative Research Office in June 2021, the estimated number of tattoo procedure users is 13 million. Considering South Korea’s population (51.63 million), that is about 25%, a lower level than overseas.

Tattoo artists are holding a rally to urge the legalization of tattoo artists.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Opinions on tattoos are mixed. Although the perception of ‘tattoos = criminals or gangsters’ has decreased, many gangsters have tattoos, and there are criticisms that the MZ generation’s tattoos on arms, legs, face, and torso cause discomfort and unpleasantness. ‘No tattoo zones’ that restrict excessive tattoo exposure are increasing in places like bathhouses, gyms, swimming pools, hotels, and golf courses, and there have even been cases where police officer appointments were canceled due to tattoos, leading to ongoing debates. The Jeonnam Provincial Council was the first in the country to enact an educational ordinance to prevent impulsive or reckless tattoo procedures among youth.

A survey conducted by the Korea Research team from March 10 to 13, 2023, targeting 1,000 men and women aged 18 and over nationwide, found that demand for semi-permanent cosmetic tattoos is 30?40%. More than 90% of those who received tattoo procedures got them from tattoo artists, but only 28% are aware that non-medical tattoo procedures are illegal. More than 60% have a negative perception of tattoos and tattooed people, and are also negative about exposing tattoos. Negative perceptions are stronger among older age groups.