Latest news with #Nvidia-designed
Korea Herald
21-05-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Samsung to produce Nvidia chips for Nintendo Switch 2
Samsung Electronics is manufacturing the main chips designed by Nvidia for the highly anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 gaming console, which launches in most regions in June. According to industry sources on Wednesday, Samsung secured orders for the Nvidia-designed chips powering the upcoming console, which is projected in some of the highest forecasts to sell as many as 20 million units by March next year. As the console firm previously relied on chips manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. for the original Nintendo Switch, Samsung's latest deal is being hailed as a major win for the Korean firm, edging out its rival foundry. Samsung has been striving to strengthen its foothold in the foundry market, where TSMC remains dominant, with major clients like Apple and Nvidia. While TSMC leads in advanced process technology and high-volume reliability, Samsung is investing heavily in next-generation nodes, like the 2 nm process, to close the gap. The Nintendo chip deal marks a meaningful step in its push to expand market share, industry observers say. Bloomberg reported that Samsung will be using its 8-nanometer node to produce the customized processor designed by Nvidia, and that, the production pace should be fast enough for Nintendo to ship more than 20 million units of the console by March next year. The shipment estimate exceeds Nintendo's own conservative projection of 15 million units. With overwhelming demand anticipated, Nintendo's decision to switch foundry partners for the upcoming console appears to be a strategic move to avoid the intense competition for production capacity that companies often face at TSMC. Scheduled for release in Korea on June 5, the Switch 2 has already generated massive buzz worldwide, including in Japan, where 2.2 million people applied for lottery-based preorders last month. Since only users with a one-year online subscription and at least 20 hours of gameplay were eligible, actual demand is likely to be far greater.
Mint
19-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Nvidia is opening its AI server platform to chip rivals
Amid the gold rush to build data centers and AI models, Nvidia has sold the most sought-after tools, driving triple-digit annual sales growth and turning the company into a $3 trillion market value giant. For the most part, Nvidia sells a 'full-stack AI solution" that includes computer processors, or CPUs, networking equipment, and the AI accelerator, also known as the GPU. It's inside an Nvidia-designed server rack. Together, these components helped to train and serve new AI models. But now Nvidia is taking a significant step toward opening its platform, allowing customers to bring their own CPU or AI chip. It offers the option for future Nvidia racks with, say, Nvidia and Qualcomm chips inside. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced the move on Monday at the COMPUTEX trade show in Taiwan. The new system is called NVLink Fusion. 'A tectonic shift is under way: for the first time in decades, data centers must be fundamentally rearchitected—AI is being fused into every computing platform," Huang said. 'NVLink Fusion opens Nvidia's AI platform and rich ecosystem for partners to build specialized AI infrastructures." Nvidia's current top-of-the-line GB200 NVL72 AI server rack system includes Nvidia Grace CPUs and Nvidia Blackwell GPUs. Initial NVLink Fusion AI chip partners include MediaTek, Marvell, and AIchip. Fujitsu and Qualcomm are the initial CPU partners. 'With the ability to connect our custom processors to Nvidia's rack scale architecture, we're advancing our vision of high-performance, energy-efficient computing to the data center," Qualcomm Technologies CEO Cristiano Amon said in a press release. The open system means large cloud providers, which were locked out of Nvidia's ecosystem when using their own custom chips, can now mix their custom chips with Nvidia's sought-after technology. For Nvidia, it means the potential to fill more data centers with its server platform and to drive more revenue. There's one catch: Broadcom, which makes many of the custom AI chips for large tech companies, wasn't on Nvidia's initial partner list, though the company said more partners could be added in the future.
Reuters
26-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UAE's bumper US bet is AI access down payment
LONDON, March 26 (Reuters Breakingviews) - United Arab Emirates' Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan may be seeking to bend President Donald Trump's ear on artificial intelligence with his oil-backed chequebook. The Gulf state is committing to invest $1.4 trillion over the next decade in the United States despite the country's economic and political uncertainties. The key test for the deal is whether it gives Abu Dhabi better access to U.S. AI technology and chips. The pledge announced, opens new tab on Friday by the White House came after Sheikh Tahnoon, the UAE's national security adviser, met Trump, tech moguls like Nvidia's (NVDA.O), opens new tab Jensen Huang and Microsoft's (MSFT.O), opens new tab Satya Nadella, as well as BlackRock's (BLK.N), opens new tab Larry Fink. The plan is to 'substantially' increase 'existing investments' in AI infrastructure, semiconductors, energy and manufacturing. The two countries have history. Abu Dhabi has already spent more than $1 trillion in the United States over the years, according to the UAE government, opens new tab. Part of it is UAE's energy giant ADNOC investment in liquefied natural gas projects in Texas. In 2024, the U.S. exported $27 billion of goods to the UAE, making the latter America's third-largest trade surplus partner. Friday's pledge even includes a plan for Emirates Global Aluminium to invest in a new smelter plant that will nearly double U.S. production. It seems to be an odd time for Sheikh Tahnoon to double down. U.S. stock valuations are rich, with the S&P 500 Index (.SPX), opens new tab trading at 21 times the next 12 months earnings. And the American economy will likely face a slowdown when Trump's tariff war bites. Moreover, being a keen U.S. investor hasn't helped Abu Dhabi much when it comes to accessing AI chips. In 2023 the U.S. restricted exports of Nvidia-designed chips to the UAE, partly out of concern they might be shared with China. Under Trump predecessor Joe Biden's AI diffusion rule, the United States put Abu Dhabi in the second tier, opens new tab of countries that are subject to export limits for advanced chips, with strict licensing and security checks needed for exports above a set threshold. Those export curbs come into force in May. The $1.4 trillion pledge is probably a last-ditch effort to persuade the Trump government to rethink the restrictions, or perhaps upgrade the UAE's status. Keeping Trump happy would also make it easier for Abu Dhabi to invest more in cutting edge AI startups such as Elon Musk's xAI. Given the UAE's goal to be a global AI leader, that would be a good trade off. Follow @karenkkwok, opens new tab on X CONTEXT NEWS The United Arab Emirates has committed to a 10-year, $1.4 trillion investment framework in the United States after top UAE officials met President Donald Trump, the White House said on March 21. The framework will "substantially increase the UAE's existing investments in the U.S. economy" in AI infrastructure, semiconductors, energy, and manufacturing, the White House said in a statement. Among the tie-ups highlighted was a partnership between UAE sovereign wealth fund ADQ and U.S. private equity firm Energy Capital Partners, for a $25 billion U.S.-focused initiative to invest in energy infrastructure and data centres. Another investment announced was by Emirates Global Aluminium in what would be the first new aluminium smelter in the United States in 35 years, the White House said, adding the plant "would nearly double U.S. domestic aluminium production". Meanwhile, Trump in January asked Saudi Arabia to spend upwards of $1 trillion in the U.S. economy, over four years, including purchases of military equipment, and said in March he likely would make his first trip abroad to the Gulf country to seal an investment agreement. The deal, which could happen between this month or the next, would come at a time when Saudi Arabia, the Arab world's biggest economy, has been taking a more prominent role in U.S. foreign policy. The Gulf country is set to host diplomatic talks around Ukraine involving the United States and Russia.
