NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang has been named the smartest CEO in the U.S. following an extensive linguistic analysis that ranked business leaders on how intelligently they express complex ideas. The study, conducted by Preply and featured by Visual Capitalist, analyzed the speech patterns of 126 prominent CEOs, evaluating their verbal ability, logical reasoning, memory, and abstract thinking.

Huang earned the top score of 81.3 out of 100, edging out Lockheed Martin’s Jim Taiclet and DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis, who rounded out the top three. The ranking highlights a growing emphasis on communication and cognitive depth in executive leadership, especially during a time when clear, strategic thinking is essential for navigating market disruptions and technological change.

The methodology behind the study is rooted in science. Researchers examined an average of 2.25 hours of publicly available audio per CEO, including interviews and speeches. These were then scored for a range of cognitive and linguistic traits — from creativity and conceptual clarity to memory recall and logical structuring.

The findings echo recent research published in Frontiers in Psychology, which connects complex linguistic ability with improved decision-making under uncertainty. In this context, language becomes more than a soft skill — it’s a marker of strategic thinking and mental agility.

Notably, the list includes some of the biggest names in business. Netflix’s Reed Hastings (77.3), OpenAI’s Sam Altman (75.2), and JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon (74.3) all made the top 15, affirming that effective communication is a hallmark of today’s most influential leaders.

Huang’s rise to the top is particularly inspiring. Born in Taiwan and raised in Thailand and Kentucky, he co-founded NVIDIA in 1993 and helped it grow into a global leader in artificial intelligence and GPU technology. Known for his intense work ethic and clarity of vision, he manages more than 60 direct reports and maintains a 14-hour workday.

The full list and methodology can be explored in detail at Visual Capitalist:
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In an age where words wield power, this ranking suggests that how leaders speak may matter just as much as what they do.