In a world where technology is evolving at an unprecedented pace, NVIDIA, a global leader in AI and computing, has made significant strides in the realm of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Accelerated Computing. In a recent keynote at Computex, NVIDIA unveiled its latest advancements, setting the stage for a new era of computing. This article delves into the highlights of the keynote, providing a comprehensive understanding of NVIDIA’s groundbreaking AI chip breakthroughs, based on the supercut video by the channel “Ticker Symbol: YOU”.
The Tipping Point of Accelerated Computing
We have reached the tipping point of accelerated computing and generative AI. NVIDIA’s H100, a product of this tipping point, is set to revolutionize every industry. The H100, a 60-pound computer, replaces an entire room of computers, making it the world’s single most expensive computer. However, the more you buy, the more you save. The H100 is the world’s first computer with a Transformer engine, offering unparalleled performance.
Accelerated computing has the potential to revolutionize large language models, the core of generative AI. With accelerated computing, a $10 million server can achieve 44 times the performance of a traditional server, consuming only 3.2 gigawatt hours. This is a testament to the power and efficiency of accelerated computing.
The End of CPU Scaling and the Rise of Deep Learning
There are two fundamental transitions in the computer industry. The first is the end of CPU scaling, which has led to the rise of deep learning. The second is the advent of accelerated computing and generative AI. These two transitions have converged to drive computing today. NVIDIA’s accelerated computing has taken nearly three decades to accomplish, but the results are worth the wait.
The Future of AI Supercomputers
Software is no longer programmed solely by computer engineers. Instead, it is programmed by computer engineers working with AI supercomputers. These AI supercomputers are a new type of factory, producing a company’s intelligence. In the future, every major company will have AI factories, producing artificial intelligence.
The Grace Hopper AI Supercomputer
NVIDIA’s Grace Hopper AI supercomputer is now in full production. This supercomputer, with nearly 200 billion transistors, is the world’s first accelerated processor with a giant memory. It is not just a chip, but an entire computer. The Grace Hopper AI supercomputer is set to extend the frontier of AI, touching every single industry.
The Hopper Architecture
It is built with over 80 billion transistors using a cutting-edge TSMC 4N process. The Hopper architecture features five groundbreaking innovations that fuel the NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPU, delivering an incredible 30X speedup over the prior generation on AI inference.
The Transformer Engine
It advances Tensor Core technology with the Transformer Engine, designed to accelerate the training of AI models. Hopper Tensor Cores have the capability to apply mixed FP8 and FP16 precisions to dramatically accelerate AI calculations for transformers. Combined with Transformer Engine and fourth-generation NVIDIA® NVLink®, Hopper Tensor Cores power an order-of-magnitude speedup on HPC and AI workloads.
NVLink Switch System
The fourth-generation NVLink is a scale-up interconnect that, when combined with the new external NVLink Switch, enables scaling multi-GPU IO across multiple servers at 900 gigabytes/second (GB/s) bi-directional per GPU. NVLink Switch System supports clusters of up to 256 connected H100s and delivers 9X higher bandwidth than InfiniBand HDR on Ampere.
NVIDIA Confidential Computing
It introduces the world’s first accelerated computing platform with confidential computing capabilities. With strong hardware-based security, users can run applications on-premises, in the cloud, or at the edge and be confident that unauthorized entities can’t view or modify the application code and data when it’s in use.
Second-Generation MIG
It also enhances Multi-Instance GPU (MIG) by supporting multi-tenant, multi-user configurations in virtualized environments across up to seven GPU instances. This securely isolates each instance with confidential computing at the hardware and hypervisor level. Dedicated video decoders for each MIG instance deliver secure, high-throughput intelligent video analytics (IVA) on shared infrastructure.
DPX Instructions
They accelerate dynamic programming algorithms by 40X compared to traditional dual-socket CPU-only servers and by 7X compared to NVIDIA Ampere architecture GPUs. This leads to dramatically faster times in disease diagnosis, routing optimizations, and even graph analytics.
Embracing the New Era of Accelerated Computing
As we navigate through the 21st century, the pace of technological evolution has been nothing short of breathtaking. We are witnessing a silent revolution, one that is quietly but fundamentally altering the fabric of our societies, economies, and industries. This revolution is the advent of accelerated computing and generative AI, spearheaded by companies like NVIDIA. Yet, many of us are still catching up with the reality that we have already stepped into a new era.
The Unseen Transition
The transition into this new era has been so seamless and swift that many of us have not fully realized its implications. The devices we use, the services we access, and the digital infrastructure that supports our daily lives are all being transformed by accelerated computing and AI. From smartphones to supercomputers, from healthcare to entertainment, every facet of our existence is being reshaped by these technologies.
The Power of Accelerated Computing
Accelerated computing has brought about a paradigm shift in how we solve complex problems. It has enabled us to crunch vast amounts of data at unprecedented speeds, leading to breakthroughs in fields as diverse as climate modeling, genomics, financial modeling, and AI. This is not just an incremental improvement over traditional computing; it is a quantum leap that is enabling us to tackle problems that were previously thought to be unsolvable.
The Rise of Generative AI
Generative AI, on the other hand, is transforming our interaction with technology. It is enabling machines to understand, learn, and even create new content, be it text, images, or music. This is leading to a new wave of innovation and creativity, as machines become partners in our creative processes. Yet, this is just the tip of the iceberg. As generative AI continues to evolve, we can expect to see even more transformative applications.
Thoughts
NVIDIA’s AI chip breakthroughs are set to revolutionize the computing industry. With the advent of accelerated computing and generative AI, we are on the cusp of a new era in computing. NVIDIA’s H100 and the Grace Hopper AI supercomputer are just the beginning of this exciting journey.
As we stand at the dawn of this new era, it is crucial that we fully grasp the magnitude of the changes that are underway. The silent revolution of accelerated computing and generative AI is not just about faster computers or smarter algorithms. It is about a fundamental shift in our capabilities as a species. It is about unlocking new possibilities, solving complex problems, and creating a future that was once only the stuff of science fiction. As we step into this new era, let us do so with a sense of awe, responsibility, and optimism for the incredible journey that lies ahead.