The scarcity of fabs capable of producing high-end chips is leading Altman and others to bid for capacity years in advance to manufacture new chips. This venture is a challenge against tech giants like Apple and requires substantial investment. Reports suggest that SoftBank Group and Abu Dhabi-based AI holding company G42 are considering funding Altman's project.
Key takeaways:
- OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is reportedly raising billions to develop a global network of chip fabrication factories to meet the high demand for chips required for advanced AI models.
- The computations behind AI models like ChatGPT or DALL-E require a significant number of chips, which has led to a surge in Nvidia's value due to its near-monopoly on popular GPUs.
- The race to manufacture more high-powered chips for complex AI systems has intensified, with a limited number of fabs capable of making high-end chips, leading to bidding for capacity years in advance.
- Altman's project reportedly involves discussions with SoftBank Group and Abu Dhabi-based AI holding company G42 about raising money, as competing against companies like Apple requires significant upfront costs that nonprofit OpenAI cannot currently afford.