In a recent developer conference held in San Jose, California, American chip company NVIDIA unveiled its latest high-performance graphics processor (GPU), the B200, based on the Blackwell architecture for artificial intelligence (AI) applications. The launch marks a significant advancement in the field of AI chips, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang describing the new chip as “the engine driving this new industrial revolution”.
The B200 chip integrates an impressive 208 billion transistors, making it 2.6 times more powerful than its predecessor. It is capable of processing tasks such as providing responses to chat robots an impressive 30 times faster than the previous generation chip. Major technology companies including Microsoft, Amazon, and Google are expected to be the first users of the Blackwell architecture chip products.
The launch of the ChatGPT generative artificial intelligence product by the U.S. Open AI Research Center has sparked a renewed focus on generative AI among tech giants in Silicon Valley. As the demand for computationally intensive large language models grows, companies are turning to high-performance graphics processors as a key tool for training artificial intelligence systems.
With data, algorithms, and computing power being the three pillars of artificial intelligence, the competition in the chip industry has intensified. Nvidia, a frontrunner in graphics processors, has capitalized on the AI trend, leading to a surge in its stock price and making it the first chip company in the world to reach a market value exceeding US$2 trillion.
As companies strive to keep up with the demand for AI chips, Nvidia currently holds a 70% to 80% market share in the field. However, competitors like Google, Microsoft, and AMD Semiconductor are increasing their investments in developing their own AI chips to challenge Nvidia’s dominance. AMD recently released the MI300 series of chip products aimed at training and running large language models.
In the rapidly evolving landscape of AI technology, companies that supply the tools for AI development may stand to benefit the most. Nvidia and other AI chip companies are poised to play a crucial role in driving the next wave of technological revolution, akin to the role played by suppliers during the mid-nineteenth-century gold rush.