Saturday, February 10th 2024
NVIDIA to Create AI Semi-custom Chip Business Unit
NVIDIA is reportedly working to set up a new business unit focused on designing semi-custom chips for some of its largest data-center customers, Reuters reports. NVIDIA dominates the AI HPC processor market, although even its biggest customers are having to shop from its general lineup of A100 series and H100 series HPC processors. There are reports of some of these customers venturing out of the NVIDIA fold, wanting to develop their own AI processor designs. It is to cater to exactly this segment that NVIDIA is setting up the new unit.
A semi-custom chip isn't just a bespoke chip designed to a customer's specifications. It is co-developed by NVIDIA and its customer, using mainly NVIDIA IP blocks, but also integrating some third-party IP blocks the customer may want; and more importantly, approach semiconductor fabrication companies such as TSMC, Samsung, or Intel Foundry Services as separate entities from NVIDIA for their wafer allocation. For example, a company like Google may have a certain amount of wafer pre-allocation with TSMC (eg: for its Tensor SoCs powering the Pixel smartphones), which it may want to tap into for a semi-custom AI HPC processor for its cloud business. NVIDIA assesses a $30 billion TAM for this specific business unit—that's all its current customers wanting to pursue their own AI processor projects, who will now be motivated to stick to NVIDIA.
Source:
Reuters
A semi-custom chip isn't just a bespoke chip designed to a customer's specifications. It is co-developed by NVIDIA and its customer, using mainly NVIDIA IP blocks, but also integrating some third-party IP blocks the customer may want; and more importantly, approach semiconductor fabrication companies such as TSMC, Samsung, or Intel Foundry Services as separate entities from NVIDIA for their wafer allocation. For example, a company like Google may have a certain amount of wafer pre-allocation with TSMC (eg: for its Tensor SoCs powering the Pixel smartphones), which it may want to tap into for a semi-custom AI HPC processor for its cloud business. NVIDIA assesses a $30 billion TAM for this specific business unit—that's all its current customers wanting to pursue their own AI processor projects, who will now be motivated to stick to NVIDIA.
42 Comments on NVIDIA to Create AI Semi-custom Chip Business Unit
Well, no surprises here. They wanted to buy ARM to become the Intel of the future. They failed buying ARM, but go with their plans anyway. Microsoft will probably go with Intel for it's future console, but who knows. They could go with Nvidia and hope that Nvidia's brand recognition could help them win against PS6. Of course it will cost them and they will have to go with ARM architecture, but.... just a thought.
Intel is at least a maybe but their problem is actually producing a chip that is significantly faster than existing console GPUs to call it an upgrade.
Nvidia is too arrogant to realise all this new competition is partly to do with how AI researchers are sick of being locked into proprietary software locked to one hardware.
Designs with a dedicated CPU/GPU are simply too costly, they need SoCs, Intel integrated graphics still suck and though Nvidia could build a decent ARM SoC it would be crazy expensive, just look at Jetson.
In fact, if they didn't already, I'd expect Nvidia to also be laying off some people too, because everyone seems to be laying people off lately.:shadedshu:
The only real players in this market are AMD and Intel. Nivea can get in the existent console market only if they do a joint venture or get aquired by Intel so they can provide 1 single chip like AMD, not 2 that would increase the cost of console manufacturing by alot.
…seriously, just google Nivea and it should click.
Intel also proved that, while a premium brand that hates offering reasonable prices, when cornered will do show. The pricing of ARC line shows that. Also their hybrid design is perfect for a cheaper SOC, where they can just put 4 P cores and 8-12 E cores, for example. In a console environment there will be no GPU driver problems and maximum optimizations for a hybrid design.
The advantages for Intel are huge and with AMD focusing on servers and AI, Intel might have more reasons to offer a cheaper SOC than AMD. Su is great but has proven from the start that will throw a product line under the bus if another product line can offer her better margins. She killed AM1 and ARM based Opteron when she got the CEO position, while those last years we see gaming GPUs to be sidelined because she knows that she will either sell low numbers of GPUs at high prices or higher number of GPUs at a loss. Nvidia can kill AMD's GPU business tomorrow morning if decides to do so. We can almost see it happening with the SUPER line and the discounts, making even a $700 RX 7900XT to look like a not so good deal. That's why we see AMD focusing on products where they know they have advantages or at least a chance against the competition. I don't expect SONY to go Intel or Nvidia, but MS I am pretty sure they are not happy losing to PS every time. And MS does have a huge number of programmers. Going Intel will be pretty easy for them. I don't expect a combination of Intel CPU and Nvidia GPU. I don't expect them to abandon the SOC aproach. As I said MS does have a gazillion programmers and if they feel that ARM is coming to desktops and laptops, I am pretty sure they would like to be ready for that transision, not suffer the same defeat they suffered in smartphones. Their collaboration with Qualcomm is ending this year, Qualcomm is losing their exclusivity with Windows on ARM. Also Qualcomm proved to be unwilling or just uncapable of producing a SOC that could bring consumers to the ARM platform. On the other hand Nvidia is a totally different beast, capable of producing powerful SOCs especially in the integrated GPU area. So they could probably build a SOC in the near future that could become a competitor to Apple's M line of SOCs. Let's not ignore the fact that a collaboration between Microsoft and Nvidia already exists thanks to AI and they probably buy hundred of thousands of Nvidia GPUs every year. Adding a huge pile of console SOCs in there, at even zero profit margins for Nvidia could easily happen. Nvidia already gets billions from MS for AI GPUs, I doubt they care getting strong margins for a console SOC when they already get billions from MS at probably strong profit margins.
And there are some clear advantages for Nvidia by expanding their collaboration with MS. Nvidia gets a foot in the console market, gets closer and stronger collaboration with MS to push together Windows on ARM, based on Nvidia hardware, coming closer to Huang's dream of becoming the next Intel(he wanted an X86 license, Intel said no and latter killed Nvidia's chipset division. Payback time is coming.).
MS on the other hand gets the top GPU technology for it's console, one or more powerful SOCs for it's Surface line to go directly against Apple and even win, a strong (Nvidia based) platform to push Windows on ARM in the market, keeping Android out of it's realm.
Also we are talking about consoles. Keeping an older console in home isn't that much of a problem. Just one more compact device next to the newer one. 20 years ago people had VCRs, Hi Fi systems, satellite and terrestrial receivers, amplifiers, CD and DVD players all pilled up in one room, putting a second console on top of another is not a problem really. Also new gamers, kids at the ages of 10-20 probably wouldn't care about older games, just the games that are all the hype at present time.
And then we have the Apple example. Going from X86 to ARM like it was the same architecture.
What we need is Samsung to come out with a very good 3nm process, Intel fix it's problems and open up it's fabs to everyone, including AMD and Canon’s new “nanoimprint” lithography technology to be a successful alternative to ASML's technologies. Only with plenty of capacity around the world we can hope that companies like AMD will have the option to really grow and avoid monopolies.
the problem of amd is the marketing not the products and stupidity of customers. also their team red marketing bullshit it embarassing and at best aimed at children.