According to a Reuters Exclusive, OpenAI, the company behind the popular ChatGPT, is considering building its own AI chips to power its products. This move could be a significant development, as it would reduce OpenAI’s reliance on third-party chipmakers, such as Nvidia. OpenAI has discussed acquiring a chipmaker to help it develop its own AI chips. The company has also considered designing its own chips from scratch.
There has been a new demand for AI chips. For those wondering what the difference is between an AI chip versus a regular chip, AI chips specialize in AI workloads. They are better than regular CPUs when it comes to dedicated learning and AI computations. AI chips are not as versatile as regular CPUs as CPUs are used for a variety of tasks.
Building custom AI chips has a number of potential benefits. It can reduce the cost of running AI models and improve the performance of AI models. As AI is becoming increasingly used across the world, dedicated AI chips will be crucial for technological advancements. AI chips can be used in any sector. Take autonomous cars for example. Instead of having to tell the computer what to look out for, AI chips can allow cars to perceive their surroundings and learn on the go. AI chips can also be used to troubleshoot a variety of things like IT issues and offer solutions. AI chips will be increasingly demanded as technology progresses.
However, building custom AI chips is a complex and expensive undertaking. It requires significant expertise in chip design and manufacturing. Additionally, it can take several years to develop and deploy a new AI chip. Until then, OpenAI will be taking a slow transition from being dependent on Nvidia to having its own AI lineup.
Should OpenAI be successful, it will be the first step in bringing competition in the AI market. The AI market is heavily dominated by Nvidia. If prices are to go down in the AI realm, more competition is needed. The world should look into tech startups engaged in developing AI chips. Because the demand is high, governments should incentivize the development of AI chips. Having a developed AI sector can be the next asset for countries to add to their portfolio. The use of AI is increasingly growing and with a choking supply, this is the time for subsidies.
Medical, financial, and manufacturing sectors will flourish should cheaper AI chips roll out. It will make production costs low, leading to lower consumer prices. But this will come at the cost of losing manual labor jobs. The world must be wary of those losing their jobs to AI in the future and finding ways to keep their jobs. One way could be to provide management positions to factory workers to ensure AI-based manufacturing plants are creating quality products and serve as a final inspection. This would also increase their wages.
For now, there is a long way to go before there are more AI chips in the market. However, OpenAI’s potential move into hardware is a significant development with far-reaching implications. It is a sign of the growing importance of AI chips and the growing competition in the AI market that will lower the costs of AI products.
Author: Aleksandros Spaho