Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Tuesday used his annual GPU Technology Conference (GTC) to address concerns that the cost of artificial intelligence (AI) computing is spiraling out of control.
Huang at the GTC unveiled more powerful chips and related technology that he said would provide a clearer payoff to customers. The lineup includes a successor to Nvidia’s flagship AI processor called the Blackwell Ultra, as well as additional generations stretching into 2027.
The new Blackwell Ultra processor lineup would arrive in the second half of this year, and would be followed by a more dramatic upgrade called Vera Rubin in the latter half of next year, and Rubin Ultra in 2027, he said.
Photo: Bloomberg
Vera Rubin’s namesake was an American astronomer credited with helping discover the existence of dark matter.
Huang also unveiled Dynamo-branded software that would fine-tune existing and future equipment, making it more efficient and profitable.
“It is essentially the operating system of an AI factory,” Huang said during a roughly two-hour presentation at the GTC in San Jose, California, which touched on everything from robot technology to personal supercomputers.
The conference, once a little-known gathering of developers, has become a closely watched event since Nvidia assumed a central role in AI — with the tech world and Wall Street taking its cues from the presentation.
Huang introduced a variety of hardware, software and services during his speech, though there were no bombshell revelations for investors. Nvidia shares closed down more than 3 percent on Tuesday.
It is a pivotal moment for Nvidia. After two years of stratospheric growth for its revenue and market value, investors this year have begun to question whether the frenzy is sustainable. These concerns were brought into focus earlier this year when Chinese start-up DeepSeek (深度求索) said it had developed a competitive AI model using a fraction of the resources.
The weeklong GTC is a chance to convince the tech industry that Nvidia chips are still must-haves for AI — a field that Huang expects to spread to more of the economy in what he has called a new industrial revolution.
Dubbed the “Super Bowl of AI,” Huang offered a road map for future chips and unveiled a breakthrough system that relies on a combination of silicon and photonics — light waves.
Nvidia also announced plans for a quantum computing research lab in Boston, aiming to capitalize on another emerging technology.
Other announcements included: A partnership with General Motors Co that would add AI to next-generation cars, factories and robots; a wireless project involving companies such as T-Mobile US Inc and Cisco Systems Inc for new 6G networks; and new Nvidia-based personal supercomputer systems from Dell Technologies Inc, HP Inc and other manufacturers.
Meanwhile, Huang said the top four public cloud vendors — Amazon.com Inc, Microsoft Corp, Alphabet Inc’s Google and Oracle Corp — bought 1.3 million of Nvidia’s older-generation Hopper AI chips last year.
So far this year, the same group has bought 3.6 million Blackwell AI chips, he said, adding that he expects Nvidia’s data center infrastructure revenue to hit US$1 trillion by 2028.
At the end of his presentation, Huang introduced an open-source physics engine for robotics simulation called Newton, which is being developed with Google’s DeepMind and Walt Disney Co.
A small, boxy robot named Blue joined him on stage, popping up from a hatch in the floor. It beeped at Huang and followed his commands, standing beside him as he wrapped up his thoughts.
“The age of generalist robotics is here,” Huang said.
Additional reporting by AP
‘DECENT RESULTS’: The company said it is confident thanks to an improving world economy and uptakes in new wireless and AI technologies, despite US uncertainty Pegatron Corp (和碩) yesterday said it plans to build a new server manufacturing factory in the US this year to address US President Donald Trump’s new tariff policy. That would be the second server production base for Pegatron in addition to the existing facilities in Taoyuan, the iPhone assembler said. Servers are one of the new businesses Pegatron has explored in recent years to develop a more balanced product lineup. “We aim to provide our services from a location in the vicinity of our customers,” Pegatron president and chief executive officer Gary Cheng (鄭光治) told an online earnings conference yesterday. “We
It was late morning and steam was rising from water tanks atop the colorful, but opaque-windowed, “soapland” sex parlors in a historic Tokyo red-light district. Walking through the narrow streets, camera in hand, was Beniko — a former sex worker who is trying to capture the spirit of the area once known as Yoshiwara through photography. “People often talk about this neighborhood having a ‘bad history,’” said Beniko, who goes by her nickname. “But the truth is that through the years people have lived here, made a life here, sometimes struggled to survive. I want to share that reality.” In its mid-17th to
‘MAKE OR BREAK’: Nvidia shares remain down more than 9 percent, but investors are hoping CEO Jensen Huang’s speech can stave off fears that the sales boom is peaking Shares in Nvidia Corp’s Taiwanese suppliers mostly closed higher yesterday on hopes that the US artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer would showcase next-generation technologies at its annual AI conference slated to open later in the day. The GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in California is to feature developers, engineers, researchers, inventors and information technology professionals, and would focus on AI, computer graphics, data science, machine learning and autonomous machines. The event comes at a make-or-break moment for the firm, as it heads into the next few quarters, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s (黃仁勳) keynote speech today seen as having the ability to
The battle for artificial intelligence supremacy hinges on microchips, but the semiconductor sector that produces them has a dirty secret: It is a major source of chemicals linked to cancer and other health problems. Global chip sales surged more than 19 percent to about US$628 billion last year, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, which forecasts double-digit growth again this year. That is adding urgency to reducing the effects of “forever chemicals” — which are also used to make firefighting foam, nonstick pans, raincoats and other everyday items — as are regulators in the US and Europe who are beginning to