208 billion transistors
Nvidia introduces new AI chip Blackwell
March 19, 2024, 12:47 a.m
Listen to article
This audio version was artificially generated. More info | Send feedback
The chip company Nvidia wants to expand its leading role in AI applications with a new generation of its computer platform. The new flagship Blackwell B200 offers exponentially increased computing power to satisfy Silicon Valley’s hunger for data.
Nvidia has introduced its new Blackwell B200 chip, with which the semiconductor manufacturer wants to further strengthen its role as the hardware backbone of artificial intelligence (AI). CEO Jensen Huang unveiled the new flagship product at the GTC 2024 trade fair in a packed ice hockey arena in Silicon Valley that had been converted to accommodate 16,000 participants. Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI and Tesla are expected as customers, said Huang. He also announced partnerships with the software companies Ansys, Cadence and Synopsys.
Named after mathematician David Blackwell, the platform replaces the 2022 Hopper series, which took its name from computing pioneer Grace Hopper. With this, the group expanded its market share to around 80 percent last year. In initial reactions, experts predicted further success with Blackwell. “We expect Nvidia to not only continue to lead, but to widen the gap with its competitors in the AI space,” Summit Insights’ Kinngai Chan said after the announcement. Nvidia’s shares have gained 240 percent in the past twelve months. As a result, the company rose to number three among the “Magnificent Seven” largest US technology companies. On Monday they were initially down 1.2 percent after the stock market closed.
Number of transistors more than doubled
The B200 presents itself as two connected chips about the same size as one of its predecessors, but which functionally form a unit. The number of transistors is 208 billion, which is more than twice as many as Hopper. The upgrade is due to the apparently unsatisfiable market demand: enormous computing power is required so that AI programs such as ChatGPT can simulate human interaction or create texts based on just a few keywords. Microsoft built a high-performance computer using 10,000 Nvidia chips for ChatGPT developer OpenAI. A price for the Blackwell B200 was not initially announced. The previous model usually costs more than $20,000 each.
“Nvidia dominates the market for GPU semiconductor chips and is a leader in artificial intelligence,” said investment strategist Ben Laidler from online broker eToro before the presentation. “But with this position comes challenges, including managing enormous demand and defending market share against rivals such as AMD and Intel. Despite these challenges, Nvidia’s long-term growth potential remains attractive, particularly given its strong position in the AI market.”