AI Computing Hardware - Past, Present, and Future

A special one-off episode with a deep dive into the past, present, and future of how computer hardware makes AI possible.

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• The Generator - An interdisciplinary AI lab empowering innovators from all fields to bring visionary ideas to life by harnessing the capabilities of artificial intelligence.

In this episode:

- Google and Mistral sign deals with AP and AFP, respectively, to deliver up-to-date news through their AI platforms.
- ChatGPT introduces a tasks feature for reminders and to-dos, positioning itself more as a personal assistant.
- Synthesia raises $180 million to enhance its AI video platform for generating videos of human avatars.
- New U.S. guidelines restrict exporting AI chips to various countries, impacting Nvidia and other tech firms.

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Timestamps:

• 00:00:00 Introduction

• 00:03:08 Historical Recap: Early AI and Hardware

• 00:11:51 The Rise of GPUs and Deep Learning

• 00:15:39 Scaling Laws and the Evolution of AI Models

• 00:24:05 The Bitter Lesson and the Future of AI Compute

• 00:25:58 Moore's Law and Huang's Law

• 00:30:12 Memory and Logic in AI Hardware

• 00:34:53 Challenges in AI Hardware: The Memory Wall

• 00:37:08 The Role of GPUs in Modern AI

• 00:42:27 Fitting Neural Nets in GPUs

• 00:48:04 Batch Sizes and GPU Utilization

• 00:52:47 Parallelism in AI Models

• 00:55:53 Matrix Multiplications and GPUs

• 00:59:57 Understanding B200 and GB200

• 01:05:41 Data Center Hierarchy

• 01:13:42 High Bandwidth Memory (HBM)

• 01:16:45 Fabrication and Packaging

• 01:20:17 The Complexity of Semiconductor Fabrication

• 01:24:34 Understanding Process Nodes

• 01:28:26 The Art of Fabrication

• 01:33:17 The Role of Yield in Fabrication

• 01:35:47 The Photolithography Process

• 01:40:38 Deep Ultraviolet Lithography (DUV)

• 01:43:58 Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUV)

• 01:51:46 Export Controls and Their Impact

• 01:54:22 The Rise of Custom AI Hardware

• 02:00:10 The Future of AI and Hardware