Amid concerns on the delay of NVIDIA’s Blackwell, CEO Jensen Huang spoke at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia and Technology Conference a few hours ago, trying to ease the doubts of the market by expressing his optimism on the demand of its products and the company’s future prospects.

“We have a lot of people on our shoulders, and everybody is counting on us,” said Huang, according to a report by Yahoo Finance. He even joked that as the world relies so much on the company, the engineers may have to spend more time on work. “Less sleep is fine. Three solid hours is all we need.”

Huang also elaborated on the demand for the delivery of NVIDIA’s components, technology, infrastructure and software, stating that it is so overwhelming that people may get “emotional,” as it has a direct impact on their revenue and competitiveness.

It is worth noting that Huang also mentioned that NVIDIA heavily relies on TSMC for producing its most important chips, as in many ways, according to a report by Economic Daily News. He said TSMC’s agility and ability to respond to demand are incredible.

Huang stated that most of NVIDIA’s technology is self-developed, and if necessary, orders could be shifted to other suppliers. However, such adjustments could lead to a decline in chip quality, according to the report.

According to a previous report from Commercial Times, NVIDIA has reportedly executed changes to the Blackwell series’ GPU mask. Therefore, the process can now proceed without re-taping out, with NVIDIA’s updated version of B200 expected to be completed by late October, allowing the GB200 to enter mass production in December.

Moreover, in his latest meeting with Goldman Sachs, Huang noted that the first trillion dollars of data centers is going to get accelerated, creating a new type of software, generative AI.

Citing Huang’s remarks, the report by Yahoo Finance stated that it matters a lot because generative AI is not just a tool but a “skill,” so for the first time, the AI chip giant is developing skills that will enhance human capabilities.

According to Yahoo Finance, Huang said that NVIDIA, along with cloud service providers (CSPs), build the infrastructure in the cloud so developers can access these machines to train, fine-tune, and safeguard models.

It is worth noting that Huang tried to materialize the benefit, saying that for every dollar a CSP spends with NVIDIA, it results in USD 5 worth of rentals. He also said while training AI models is resource-intensive, it pays off in the long run.

Citing Huang, the report stated that NVIDIA’s servers may seem expensive at first glance, as it potentially costs a couple of million dollars per rack. However, they replace thousands of nodes. What is remarkable is that the cost of cables for old, general-purpose computing systems is higher than consolidating everything into a single, dense rack, Huang said.

According to Yahoo Finance, Huang also noted that the days of software engineers writing every line of code are completely behind. In his vision, every software engineer will have digital companions working alongside them 24/7.

In addition, NVIDIA, with its 32,000 employees, hopes to be supported by “100 times more digital engineers” in the near future, the report noted.

Notably, there seems to be another piece of good news for the U.S. chip giant. According to a report by Reuters, the U.S. government is said to be mulling, allowing NVIDIA to export advanced chips to Saudi Arabia, which would enable the country to train and operate the most powerful AI models.

According to the report, Saudi Arabia expects to receive shipments of NVIDIA’s most advanced chips, the H200s, which were first used in OpenAI’s GPT-4o.

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• [News] NVIDIA’s Blackwell Overcomes Delays, as GB200 Reportedly Sets for December Mass Production
• [News] Foxconn Remains Unfazed Despite NVIDIA’s GB200 Delay, with Customers Aim to Secure Their Orders

(Photo credit: NVIDIA)

According to a report from Commercial Times citing sources, it’s revealed that NVIDIA has executed changes to the Blackwell series’ 6-layer GPU mask. Therefore, the process can now proceed without re-taping out, as production delays being minimized.

The report noted that NVIDIA’s updated version of B200 is expected to be completed by late October, allowing the GB200 to enter mass production in December, with large-scale deliveries to ODMs expected in the first quarter of next year.

Previously, as per a report from The Information, NVIDIA’s GB200 was said to be experiencing a one-quarter delay in mass shipments. Another report from the Economic Daily News further suggested that the problem likely lies in the yield rates of advanced packaging, which mainly affected the non-reference-designed GB200 chips.

Industry sources cited by Commercial Times addressed that NVIDIA’s Blackwell chip used to be facing instability in metal layers during the HV process, which was then resolved by July.

In addition, since the issue reportedly occurred in the back-end-of-line process, a new tape-out was deemed unnecessary. Still, as CoWoS-L capacity remains a bottleneck, the advanced packaging for GB200 this year is expected to adopt  CoWoS-S.

Read more

• [News] Foxconn Confirms Shipment of NVIDIA’s GB200 to Start in Q4 as Planned
• [News] Foxconn Remains Unfazed Despite NVIDIA’s GB200 Delay, with Customers Aim to Secure Their Orders

(Photo credit: NVIDIA)

Recently, the 54th “Statistical Report on China’s Internet Development” was released. In the first half of the year, generative artificial intelligence (AI) continued to be a global technology hotspot, and China’s AI industry has gradually entered a period of fast development. “AI+” continues to empower industrial upgrading, contributing to the acceleration of new productivity development and the deep advancement of new industrialization.

Data shows that the market size of China’s core AI industry has approached CNY 600 billion, with more than 4,500 AI companies, and the computing power ranks second globally.

On September 8, Vice Minister and Deputy China International Trade Representative Ling Ji explained that Chinese AI companies account for about 1/7 of the global total.

Meanwhile, AI products have gained significant recognition and use among China’s vast internet user base. The report surveyed the usage of generative AI products, showing that by June 2024, the penetration rate of AI, particularly large models, reached 16.4%.

Moreover, the “National Artificial Intelligence Industry Comprehensive Standardization System Construction Guide (2024 Edition)” , jointly issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, was officially released.

The guide is regarded as a key document for the formation of China’s standard system to drive the development of the AI industry.

The guide points out that by 2026, the level of integration between standards and technological innovation in the industry will continue to improve, with more than 50 new national and industry standards being developed, accelerating the formation of a standard system that promotes the high-quality development of the AI industry.

More than 1,000 companies will participate in the promotion and implementation of these standards, with the effect of standards on corporate innovation becoming more prominent. China will also participate in the development of more than 20 international standards, promoting the globalization of the AI industry.

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• [News] US Reportedly Weighs Stricter Limits on AI Memory Access for China

(Photo credit: pixabay)

The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI is in talks for a new round of funding, with tech giants Apple and NVIDIA both interested in investing in the AI research company OpenAI.

It’s reported that this investment will be part of OpenAI’s new round of financing, which will bring its estimated value to exceed USD 100 billion.

Sources indicated that OpenAI plans to raise billions of dollars, and venture capital firm Thrive Capital will lead this round of funding with a USD 1 billion investment. Microsoft, OpenAI’s largest shareholder, will also be a part of this round.

Reportedly, sources have revealed that Apple is currently in talks with OpenAI for the potential investment, while NVIDIA has already discussed joining the latest round of funding, who reportedly considered investing USD 100 million.

Although it is not yet clear how much Apple and Microsoft plan to invest, the point is that the three most valuable tech giants in the world would all become shareholders of OpenAI if these negotiations end in success.

In a memo on Wednesday, OpenAI’s CFO Sarah Friar stated that the company is seeking new financing but did not disclose specific details. Friar mentioned that OpenAI would leverage this funding to strengthen computing power and cover other operational expenses.

With the rise of the AI industry, Microsoft, Apple, and NVIDIA have also accelerated their pace in developing AI technologies.

Microsoft has invested USD 13 billion in OpenAI since 2019, holding a stake of 49% in this company. Apple, at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June this year, launched the Apple Intelligence system and announced a partnership with OpenAI.

As for NVIDIA, it has long been closely collaborating with OpenAI and has been highly active in making investment in this field. Its investment arm, NVentures, has invested in several AI companies since 2023.

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• [News] NVIDIA’s Q3 Forecast Fails to Impress, while It Claims Blackwell to Bring Several Billion Dollars Revenue in Q4
• [News] NVIDIA’s Dominance Under Threat? Challengers Are Launching New Products to Compete

(Photo credit: OpenAI)

AI chip NVIDIA provided financial guidance for the third quarter, estimating its quarterly revenue to reach USD 32.5 billion, with a fluctuation of plus or minus 2%. The figure, though beats market expectations in general, still falls short of the market’s most optimistic forecast of USD 37.9 billion, sparking concerns that its explosive growth is waning.

On the other hand, regarding whether NVIDIA’s next-gen AI chip, Blackwell, faces delay, the tech giant notes that it shipped samples this quarter, and has made an adjustment to the product to make it more efficient to manufacture, according to a report by CNBC.

Citing CFO Colette Kress, the report states that in the fourth quarter, “we expect to ship several billion dollars in Blackwell revenue.”

Q3 Guidance Somehow Fails to Impress the Market

According to NVIDIA’s guidance, the adjusted gross margin in the third quarter is expected to be 75%, with a fluctuation of plus or minus 50 basis points, slightly below the market expectation of 75.5%. The company’s gross margin for the second quarter was 75.7%, with an average expectation of 75.8%.

This quarter’s outlook, though being solid, somehow fails to impress the market. The AI chip manufacturer has been a major beneficiary as companies rush to upgrade their data centers to handle AI software, and its sales forecast has become a barometer of this AI surge.

A report by the Economic Daily raises concerns that though the company has had several consecutive quarters of outstanding performance, most of its growth comes from a small number of customers. For instance, about 40% of its revenue comes from large data center operators, such as Google and Meta.

Although these tech giants have been investing heavily on AI, there are concerns that the scale of the infrastructure being built may exceed current demand, which could lead to a bubble.

Blackwell Update: Obstacles Removed?

There were concerns that there might be design issues with Blackwell, which might cause the shipment to delay. According to the report by the Economic Daily, NVIDIA admitted that it has encountered difficulties in the production process, but stated that they are implementing reforms to improve yield rates.

A report by Wccftech states that NVIDIA has confirmed that it has “implemented a change” to the Blackwell GPU mask produced at TSMC using the 4NP process node, which is expected to further enhance production yield. As this change is not a significant architectural redesign, the product remains on schedule for the ramp to start in the fourth quarter and continuing into FY2026.

According to Wccftech, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang reiterates that “Hopper demand remains strong, and the anticipation for Blackwell is incredible.” CFO Colette Kress further states that in the fourth quarter, “we expect to ship several billion dollars in Blackwell revenue.”

Q2 Performance Still Beats Market Expectations

In the second quarter, which ended on July 28, NVIDIA’s revenue was USD 30.04 billion, surpassing the market expectation of USD 28.7 billion. The annual growth rate for this quarter was 122%, marking the third consecutive quarter with a growth rate exceeding 200%. Net income for the quarter more than doubled from USD 6.18 billion, or 25 cents per share, a year ago to USD 16.6 billion, or 67 cents per share. Adjusted earnings per share were 68 cents, beating the market expectation of 64 cents.

It is worth noting that NVIDIA’s data center business revenue in the second quarter increased significantly by 154% YoY to $USD 26.3 billion, accounting for 88% of total sales. Its gaming revenue also grew 16% year over year to USD 2.9 billion, exceeding the expected USD 2.7 billion, which the company attributes to an increase in shipments of PC gaming cards and game console SoCs, reportedly chips for Nintendo’s game consoles.

The company also announced the approval of a USD 50 billion share buyback program.

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• [News] SK hynix, TSMC, and NVIDIA Reportedly Forge Alliance to Develop Next-Generation HBM
• [News] Foxconn Confirms Shipment of NVIDIA’s GB200 to Start in Q4 as Planned

(Photo credit: NVIDIA)