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
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