In recent years, data center has been one of the key areas for GaN (Gallium Nitride) manufacturers to tap power electronics market, and GaN applications in the data center power supply market have taken a big step forward. Notably, the rise of AI technology has further fueled this market at present.

In the AI ecosystem, data centers have enormous demands for high-speed computing and power. According to a TrendForce report, NVIDIA’s Blackwell platform will be officially launched in 2025, replacing the existing Hopper platform, and will become NVIDIA’s primary solution for high-end GPU, accounting for nearly 83% of all high-end products.

For high-performance AI servers like the B200 and GB200, a single GPU can consume more than 1,000W of power.

Facing soaring power demands, the power specifications for each data center rack will increase from 30-40kW to 100kW, posing significant challenges for data center power systems. The combination of GaN and liquid cooling technologies will be critical to improving energy efficiency in AI data centers.

The hike in chip power consumption requires servers to achieve higher power density and efficiency.

GaN, which reduces energy losses and increases power density, is now seen as one of the key technologies for optimizing energy efficiency in AI data centers, which has attracted many players, including Infineon, Texas Instruments (TI), Navitas, Innoscience, Transphorm, CorEnergy, Danxi Tech, and GaNext, to join the race.

Among them, both Navitas and Infineon have unveiled their AI data center power roadmaps.

Infineon’s AI Data Center Power Roadmap (Source: Infineon)

Combining the unique advantages of Si (Silicon), SiC (Silicon Carbide), and GaN (Gallium Nitride), Infineon has launched a 3 kW PSU and a 3.3 kW PSU, with an 8 kW PSU expected to be available in the first quarter of 2025.

The new 8 kW PSU will support AI racks with outputs of up to 300 kW or more. Compared to the 32 W/in³ density of the 3 kW PSU, its efficiency and power density will increase to 100 W/in³, further reducing system size and lowering operator costs.

In terms of GaN technology, Infineon’s CoolGaN™ solution can provide over 99% system efficiency in PFC topologies. Moreover, GaN Systems, acquired by Infineon, already released a 3.2kW AI server power supply as early as 2022 and unveiled its fourth-generation GaN platform in 2023.

The new platform achieves efficiency exceeding the Titanium level, with power density increased from 100W/in³ to 120W/in³. Thereby, the industry highly expects the synergistic effect created by the combination of these two companies.

Navitas introduced its GaNSafe™ and Gen-3 Fast SiC technology last year, along with a 4.5kW CRPS design, achieving more than double the power density of traditional silicon solutions. In July this year, Navitas unveiled its CRPS185 4.5kW AI data center server power solution, with a power density of 137W/in³ and over 97% efficiency.

Navitas AI Data Center Power Roadmap (Source: Navitas)

Navitas revealed that over 60 customer projects involving 3.2kW and 4.5kW power solutions for data centers are currently under development.

These projects are expected to bring millions of dollars in revenue growth for Navitas’ GaN and SiC business between 2024 and 2025. It aims to begin small-scale production of AI data center power solutions in 2024.

Aside from Infineon and Navitas, other manufacturers like TI, EPC, CorEnergy, GaNext, and Innoscience also set sights on this market.

TI reached an agreement with Delta, the world’s largest server power supply provider (with nearly 50% market share), as early as 2021. Based on GaN technology and TI’s C2000™ MCU real-time control solution, they are developing high-efficiency, high-power server PSU for data centers.

Thus, their joint efforts and future fruit in the AI server power market are highly anticipated.

Beyond AI data center server, humanoid robot industry that enjoys burgeoning growth this year, also injects new vitality into the GaN market.

Humanoid robot is assembled by sensing, control, motor, and battery systems, in which GaN can has its place in LiDAR system, motor drive, DC-DC converter, and battery BMS, among which motor drive plays a critical role.

According to TrendForce, the demand for motor driver in humanoid robot has skyrocketed due to the mounting demands for degrees of freedom.

To achieve higher power output, high-power-density, high-efficiency, and fast-response motor driver are in demand, and GaN is a perfect fit for it, which also has the ability to strengthen overall robot performance in terms of heat management, compact design, and overall system design.

It is reported that Siemens, Yaskawa Electric, and Elmo have already integrated GaN technology into their robotic motors, and the GaN industry chain is gearing up for seizing more opportunities.

Currently, companies such as TI, EPC, Transphorm, Innoscience, Navitas, and CorEnergy are actively promoting GaN adoption in motor drive market. Among them, Transphorm has supplied GaN FET products for Yaskawa Electric’s new servo motor.

TrendForce points out that future robots will exceed our imagination, with precise, fast, and powerful movement capabilities as the key parts, which will inevitably push the motors required to drive these movements advance forward, and this is regarded as a boon for GaN technology.

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• [News] Global GaN Power Device Market Size Expected to Reach USD 4.376 Billion in 2030, CAGR of 49%
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(Photo credit: Infineon)

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.

Read more

• [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] Nanjing, China Achieved Breakthrough in Manufacturing Key SiC Chip for the First Time
• [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)