What happened: Microsoft is accelerating the rollout of its own artificial intelligence chips, which would be used to build generative AI systems and large language models like ChatGPT. Details: The AI chips have been secretly under development since 2019, according to The Information. Now, some employees at Microsoft and OpenAI — the Microsoft-backed AI company behind ChatGPT — are testing out the chip code-named "Athena" as Microsoft seeks to curb its reliance on outside vendors like Nvidia. What the numbers say: Nvidia's latest H100 processors, its most advanced GPUs for AI inference and training, are selling for upwards of $45,000 on eBay. Nvidia dominates the AI chip market, which is expected to grow from $16.7B in 2022 to $227.5B by 2032. Why it matters: While not a direct replacement for Nvidia, Microsoft chips could save it time and money as it ramps up its efforts to incorporate AI into everything from Bing to Office apps. It could give Microsoft a hand up in the competition against Google, Amazon, and Meta, which all have their own AI hardware.
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