Artificial intelligence is a crucial new technology with an economic and social impact we still struggle to measure. ChatGPT took the world by storm and was soon followed by other initiatives, like Midjourney’s image generation, which left everyone in awe. However, AI has many other potential uses, and this is just the front side of a much bigger machine.
AI has the potential to influence every aspect of our society, from your entertainment with movies to investing, farming, and more. Several tech companies are now attempting to create AI-powered chips. Yet, is it the next step to harness the power of this technology or just a marketing trick?
Why AI Chips Are Required For The Industry
Artificial Intelligence works in a particular way, and it needs specialized chips to become more efficient. Nvidia has been at the forefront of creating AI-optimized architecture, representing 80% of the market. These chips contain GPU (Graphic Processing Units) like the chips we know and use in our computers. Yet, they differ in the use of application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) designed for AI calculations.
In the mainstream tech industry, we’re starting to see similarities in the way the products are made. However, DLSS, Nvidia’s AI-frame generation technology, doesn’t rely only on the hardware. It also uses software to run, which makes a big difference.
OpenAI Wants To Create Its Own Chips
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, used to be a non-profit organization focusing on research. Following the success of ChatGPT, it decided to become a for-profit organization, and it obviously changed its approach.
It allowed them to monetize their services, with GPT-4 becoming a subscription service. The same happened with their other tools like Dall-E. Due to the prominence of Nvidia in the tech market with their graphics cards, most AI tools are built based on their architecture. That’s why OpenAI has been working closely with them to optimize their services.
However, the AI company is now considering creating its own chips by collaborating with Nvidia and other tech groups. Their goal is to solve the AI chip shortage issue they’ve been experiencing. Sam Altman, co-founder of OpenAI, complained about it several times over the years.
Lenovo is Making AI-Powered Gaming Computers
Lenovo has announced and launched its Legion line-up, which is powered by AI. However, in this instance, it’s designed to optimize gaming. These computers use artificial intelligence to boost performance while in the game. The promise is ambitious, with presets making setting up the games easier. Players don’t have to optimize the games themselves. It’s often an issue for beginners without technical knowledge.
However, the results are still not convincing for those who know how to optimize their gear despite the use of machine learning. Yet, it’s a step in the right direction, showing that it’s possible to create AI-powered products.
How AI Chips Could Impact Our Tech
Orienting chip design towards AI is clearly the future of our technology, and soon, we’ll see it everywhere. It could profoundly impact how we approach technology and various industries. AI calculation is extremely powerful. We’ve seen it with Nvidia ACE, which offers the possibility to create dynamic NPCs with unique conversations and quest lines. The Unreal Engine 5.2 update also allows for AI generation for level design.
Outside of gaming, this power could improve various industries that need cumbersome processes to be automated with complex calculations. For example, farming could become more responsible with optimized crop culture using just the right amounts of fertilizer or an optimized distribution pipeline synchronizing every step of the production chain.