Sam Altman – CEO of OpenAI, is ready to confront Nvidia – the global AI processing chip hegemon, planning to build a multi-billion dollar network of AI chip factories called Tigris.
Sam Altman’s tough ambition
According to Bloomberg, the CEO of OpenAI – a pioneer in artificial intelligence backed by Microsoft, has planned for the birth of an AI-centric semiconductor chip manufacturing giant. Get ready for the battle to break Nvidia’s dominance in advanced semiconductors.
As the father of ChatGPT, more than anyone else, Sam Altman witnessed the unprecedented interest of businesses and users in AI, opening a new era of highly automated technology. Also from this event has arisen a huge demand for AI chips with the necessary computing power and processors to meet AI products. Sam Altman himself has repeatedly emphasized that the current chip supply cannot meet OpenAI’s insatiable demand.
With this strategy, Sam Altman hopes that OpenAI will be completely proactive in the supply of advanced chips, minimizing the cost of manufacturing and purchasing AI processing chips compared to the present. Furthermore, the AI research and operations industry will no longer depend almost entirely on Nvidia.
But, Sam Altman’s ambitions were also temporarily interrupted when he was briefly fired as CEO of OpenAI in November 2023. It is predicted that this is related to the huge impact of the project. to the global semiconductor industry when actually deployed. However, soon Sam Altman returned, reviving the Tigris project and increasing efforts to implement it.
How determined was Sam Altman?
Building an advanced chip factory requires a huge financial investment, and setting up a network of such manufacturing facilities can take several years. According to analysts, the cost of a chip factory can range from $10 billion to $20 billion, depending on factors such as location and capacity. That number is even more enormous with Sam Altman’s network ambitions.
Sam Altman has begun confidential conversations with potential investors, aiming to negotiate financial support for the Tigris Project. He had conversations with potential investors including Group 42 Holding Ltd. headquartered in Abu Dhabi with a support figure of $8 – 10 billion, SoftBank Group, TSMC Group from Taiwan. and upcoming SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won on a trip to Korea.
If it goes as planned, Tigris is considered by analysts to be an ambitious and bold technology project with OpenAI, and a major impact on the global semiconductor industry, especially the AI chip industry.
Source: https://www.eenewseurope.com/en/openais-altman-wants-to-build-multiple-wafer-fabs/