A fried chicken outing just moved markets — How Nvidia CEO’s viral pic with Samsung, Hyundai heads sparked stock rally

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was spotted on Thursday evening sharing fried chicken and beer with Samsung Electronics Chairman Jay Y Lee and Hyundai Motor Executive Chair Chung Euisun at Kkanbu Chicken, a local restaurant in Seoul, South Korea. What started as a casual dinner turned into a viral sensation – and a stock market ripple.

Media frenzy and public reaction

Photos of the trio quickly lit up social media, drawing crowds of fans, journalists, and even national broadcasters, who aired live footage of the executives eating, drinking and chatting. Diners inside the restaurant were seen snapping pictures, and Jensen Huang later signed autographs, including on a $2 bill and a skincare gift bag, and handed food to a nearby policeman, Business Insider reported.

Market reaction to the picture

While Kkanbu Chicken is not publicly listed, its rival, Kyochon F&B, saw shares surge by as much as 20% on Friday after the viral pictures circulated on social media.

Korean poultry processor Cherrybro hit its daily limit of 30%, and Neuromeka, a Kosdaq-listed company that makes chicken-frying robots, saw trading volume spike nearly 200 times, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

This is not the first time South Korea’s market has reacted to viral moments. A pen-maker’s stock once rallied after a mention by Donald Trump. This trend, often in small-cap Kosdaq stocks, is rarely driven by fundamentals and often lacks any real link to company operations, Bloomberg reported.

What does this mean for the companies?

The dinner was not just about Chi-maek (the Korean combo of chicken and beer). Jensen Huang gifted both Jay Y Lee and Chung Euisun Nvidia-labelled DGX boxes — the firm’s series of AI systems. Lee later showed the cameras a note signed by Huang that read: “To our partnership and future of the world!”

The meeting came just days after Bloomberg published a report on Tuesday, saying Nvidia plans to unveil contracts to supply chips to both Samsung and Hyundai. Huang’s trip to South Korea also coincided with US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit.

This is not the first time the Nvidia chief executive has moved markets. In 2024, shares of several AI-related companies surged after he mentioned them during a presentation, showing how Huang’s influence goes well beyond his company.