Nvidia unveils flagship AI chip, the B200, aiming to extend dominance

NVIDIA has unveiled a new chip at GTC 2024 called the Blackwell B200 supposed to be 300 times faster than its predecessor.

Artificial-intelligence semiconductor powerhouse Nvidia on Monday unveiled a flagship AI chip, the Blackwell B200, saying it is up to 30 times speedier than its previous chip.

Chief Executive Jensen Huang, kicking off the company's annual developer conference, also launched a new set of software tools designed to help developers sell their artificial-intelligence models more easily to any company that uses Nvidia. Nvidia's chip and software announcements at GTC 2024 will help determine whether the company can maintain its leadership position as the dominant seller of AI equipment. Nvidia had a roughly 80% share of the data center AI chip market last year.

"I hope you realize this is not a concert," Huang, wearing his trademark black leather jacket, said after taking the stage, in a nod to the rising profile of his company.

The B200 takes two chips the size of Nvidia's previous offering and binds them together into a single chip.

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The new chip has 208 billion transistors, more than double the 80 billion on the company's previous chip. All of those transistors can access the memory attached to the chip at nearly the same time, improving productivity.

Tom Plumb, CEO and portfolio manager at Plumb Funds, which has Nvidia as one of its largest holdings, said the Blackwell chip was not a surprise.