TOKYO (Reuters) -SoftBank’s Japanese telecoms unit will obtain the primary chips utilizing Nvidia (NASDAQ:)’s newest Blackwell design for its supercomputer, the California-based chip designer stated, as Masayoshi Son appears to be like to trip the substitute intelligence growth.
SoftBank (TYO:) Corp can be planning to make use of Grace Blackwell chips for an additional supercomputer, stated Nvidia, which held an AI occasion in Tokyo on Wednesday that includes SoftBank Group CEO Son and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
Son is pushing to broaden his conglomerate’s publicity to the AI wave, taking a stake in OpenAI and buying chip startup Graphcore, after a turbulent few years that compelled the ebullient billionaire to retrench.
The 2 businessmen held a “hearth chat” on the occasion, with Jensen recalling Son had as soon as provided to lend him cash to purchase Nvidia as its worth was not understood by the market.
“He wished to lend me cash to purchase Nvidia. All of it. Now I remorse not taking it,” Huang stated, laughing.
Son stated the supply was made a month after he acquired chip designer Arm. The Japanese billionare later constructed and offered down a stake in Nvidia and tried the sale of Arm to Huang’s firm which foundered on regulatory hurdles.
Nvidia, as soon as finest generally known as a designer of graphic chips for gaming, has gone on to develop into the world’s most useful firm powered by insatiable demand for its chips.
Whereas Son has constructed a status as a far-sighted investor with relationships with main entrepreneurs and bets on firms resembling Alibaba (NYSE:), he has additionally made excessive profile slips resembling backing workplace house sharing agency WeWork (OTC:).
With telcos world wide search for new progress drivers, SoftBank has partnered with Nvidia to pilot a community that may run each 5G and AI providers.
“It is the identical imaginative and prescient that we are able to scent, proper? It is like a wolf scent wolf,” Son stated of the similarities between the 2 males.
“I’ve two puppies. I do not like that psychological picture,” Huang joked in response.