For AI, The Inflection Point Was Early 2022 -- Turbines

 

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1. 

Nvidia Unveils the Hopper Architecture (2022)

• In March 2022, Nvidia announced its Hopper microarchitecture for AI accelerators, including the high-performance HGX H100 GPUs.

• By late 2022, the H100 and its scaled variants (e.g. H800) became the industry standard for AI model training in datacenters. The demand for these chips caused massive shipping delays and supply constraints.

• This shift marked the start of the AI compute arms race—datacenter spend exploded and Nvidia solidified its dominance.

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2. 

Release of ChatGPT — Igniting Generative AI

• In November 2022, OpenAI released ChatGPT, which rapidly went viral—gaining 100 million users in just two months, making it one of the fastest-growing software products ever.

• That moment elevated generative AI from niche research into the mainstream, amplifying demand for powerful AI hardware.

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3. 

GPU Shortages Became Acute

• As 2022 unfolded, GPU demand surged—doubling down on the supply crunch that already loomed over the market. Costs rose, lead times lengthened, and data centers, AI startups, and cloud providers scrambled to secure compute.

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4. 

Nvidia’s Value Soars — AI Goes Mainstream

• Fueled by explosive demand for AI compute, Nvidia’s market cap shot past $2 trillion, eventually crossing $4 trillion—becoming one of the world’s most valuable companies.

• This valuation surge mirrored the broader AI computing boom that took root in early 2022.

 Summary:

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Turbines

ChatGPT prompt:

For coal-burning and natural-gas burning plants producing electricity, what companies make the necessary turbines?

Reply:

1. GE Vernova, USA, both gas turbines and steam turbines.
2. Siemens, German, both gas and steam.
3. Mitsubishi Power, Japan, gas and steam, plus integrated combined-cycle systems.
4. Toshiba Energy, Japan, primarily known for steam turbines for ultra-supercritical plants.
5. Hitach, Japan / Switzerland, historically, large steam turbines, not focused more on transmission and smaller-scale generation but still in coal plant retrofits.
6. Doosan Škoda Power, South Korea / Czech Republic, steam turbines for coal, biomass, and nuclear.