Benzinga - by Shivani Kumaresan, Benzinga Staff Writer.
Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) has captured the tech world’s attention with a less visible but highly impactful product, the H100 processor.
This chip has played a pivotal role in the surge of artificial intelligence tools, driving Nvidia past Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to become the world’s second-most valuable company.
Demand for the H100 is so high that some customers face a six-month wait to receive it, showcasing the chip’s significant impact on the industry, according to a report from Bloomberg.
The H100 processor, named after computer science pioneer Grace Hopper, enhances the capabilities of traditional graphics processing units.
It aggregates multiple Nvidia chips into single units capable of processing vast data volumes at high speeds, making it ideal for training the neural networks that power generative AI, Bloomberg writes.
Nvidia, founded in 1993, foresaw the potential of parallel processing and has been investing in this technology for nearly two decades.
The H100’s Significance
Generative AI platforms, which perform tasks like text translation and image synthesis, require enormous computing power.
Nvidia’s H100, four times faster than its predecessor the A100, excels in training these large language models. The chip is also 30 times quicker in responding to user prompts.
Also Read: Nvidia To Remain As A Benchmark For Computing Industry And Spur Demand, Say Analysts
Nvidia has since released even more advanced versions, including the H200 and Blackwell B100 and B200, which are crucial for companies in the AI race. Due to their strategic importance, the U.S. has restricted the sale of these chips to China.
Nvidia controls around 92% of the data center GPU market, with major cloud providers like Amazon.com Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) AWS, Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google Cloud, and Microsoft Corp.’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Azure also developing their own chips.
However, these efforts have yet to impact Nvidia’s market position significantly. The company offers various cluster systems to help clients deploy H100s efficiently.
While competitors like Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) offer chips capable of complex data processing, they lack the core count and speed of Nvidia’s products.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), the second-largest graphics chipmaker, has introduced its Instinct line to challenge Nvidia.
At Computex in Taiwan, AMD’s CEO Lisa Su announced the MI300 AI processor, set to launch in the fourth quarter, with future products planned for 2025 and 2026.
Nvidia’s upcoming Blackwell series is highly anticipated, with the company expecting substantial revenue from this new line.
Price Action: NVDA shares are trading lower by 0.93% at $1,198.78 at the last check on Friday.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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Photo courtesy of Nvidia
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