Nvidia has plans to put its chips in personal computers
Nvidia has become the world’s most valuable company by selling artificial intelligence chips that are used in massive data centers. Now they are trying to put their technology into people’s homes.
The chipmaker said Monday it has developed a new chip called the RTX Spark that will power laptops and desktops from Dell, HP, Microsoft, Lenovo and others. The computers, which will be available this fall, are designed to run local artificial intelligence systems that can sort through files and quickly perform tasks with greater privacy and security.
With its push into laptops, Nvidia is the latest tech company to reinvent the PC for the AI era. Microsoft and Qualcomm teamed up two years ago to launch the Copilot+ computer, which they say will make it easier to search for documents and edit photos. But you computers struggled to gain traction.
Nvidia is betting that its PCs will hit the market at the right time just as AI assistants, known as agents, are becoming more popular. The company is working with Microsoft and laptop manufacturers to allow agents to navigate computers by autonomously controlling a mouse and keyboard as a user.
The PC chip headlined a two-hour showcase of Nvidia’s AI products at a computer and electronics conference in Taipei, Taiwan. The company also announced a new robot collaboration with China’s Unitree Robotics and a new software system to help customers manage its chips in data centers.
Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, said that the AI supercomputer could become a common household appliance in the future, so that home theaters, big TVs, lawnmowers and dishwashers are no longer uncommon.
“I can imagine one day having an AI supercomputer in your house,” he said. “They run all your agents, manage all your assistants, and do all sorts of things for you all the time.
Nvidia’s entry into the PC market was made possible by the struggles of Microsoft’s longtime partner, Intel. Once the undisputed king of PCs, Intel’s performance in key areas such as battery life has been declining. In 2021, Microsoft responded by allowing Windows software to run with Qualcomm, Nvidia and others. Nvidia has also been working with Microsoft on a PC chip for several years.
Computers that include Nvidia chips are designed to appeal to people who develop AI systems, play video games, and create computer graphics. The company said it will provide details on battery life and other performance metrics in the fall.
PCs are unlikely to lift Nvidia’s business because the artificial intelligence and PC video game markets are niche, said Max Weinbach, technology analyst at Creative Strategies, a technology research firm. However, it could allow them to expand the reach of their technology among AI developers, which could help their brand and business.
Apple is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the growing demand for artificial intelligence computers. The MacBook Pro, with its most powerful chips, is popular with AI developers. Its Mac Mini, a desktop with significant amounts of memory, also flew off the shelves this year as AI developers use the model to host AI agents that can send emails and debug software code.
“Apple pretty much owns that market today,” Mr. Weinbach said. “Nvidia wants to build a laptop ecosystem for Windows that is an alternative.”
Nvidia also said it worked with Unitree, a leading Chinese robotics firm, on a new humanoid robot. The robot has five-fingered hands and is over five feet tall. It is powered by the Nvidia Jetson chip and runs on Nvidia’s AI model for bots. It should be available in October.
The robot is designed to be used by universities interested in humanoid research, said Rev Lebaredian, Nvidia’s vice president of physical artificial intelligence. “It’s an extremely capable humanoid robot,” he said at a briefing before the event.
The Unitree partnership has the potential to raise concerns in Washington, where lawmakers worry that China’s robots could be used by the People’s Liberation Army. Last year the House of Representatives Selection Committee for China called for Unitree to be designated as a military company. The House Homeland Security Committee also held hearings to examine Unitree’s “national security risks.”
As part of the partnership, Nvidia said its technology will power the machines, while the robots will be built with Unitree components. He also said that the data will stay with the users and not go back to China.
Nvidia also provided updates to software it developed to help design data centers. It allows developers to simulate how a data center will be built and run before it’s built, so they can control how the chips are cooled and how power is distributed, said Ian Buck, Nvidia’s vice president of high-performance computing.
This year, the biggest tech companies have committed to spending nearly $1 trillion on data centers. However, some of these projects have been delayed due to power restrictions and pushback from communities.
Mr. Buck said the system would help developers with such problems by allowing them to coordinate with utility companies to reduce electricity use on hot days when nearby homes might use more air conditioning.