Chip wars explode: NVIDIA’s skyrocketing profits and Altman’s trillion-dollar AI bet

The global chip war is escalating rapidly, pushed by NVIDIA’s record earnings and OpenAI’s CEO’s plans to raise between 5 and 7 trillion dollars for AI-focused chip manufacturing. But can the energy grid survive the power-hungry demands of AI?

The global demand for chips is unstoppable as digitalization accelerates globally. NVIDIA, the chipmaking American leader, on May 23 beat analyst expectations, sending its shares soaring 7.4% and surpassing 1000 $ per share. This unstoppable rise is a clear sign: the demand for AI-powered tech is off the charts, and it’s only going to get hotter as AI goes mainstream.

The US is determined to play a big role in the chip-making space producing at least 10% of global supply. Under President Biden the country is planning a huge 203% expansion of its chip manufacturing capacity by 2032. Fueled by the CHIPS and Science Act and billions of dollars in incentives, the US is determined to reclaim its position as a chip-making powerhouse and reduce its reliance on foreign suppliers particularly from China, Taiwan and South Korea.

But the chip war is far from over. Two recent developments have set the stage for an even more intense battle. First, Sam Altman, the visionary CEO of OpenAI (the masterminds behind ChatGPT), revealed a jaw-dropping plan to raise a mind-boggling $7 trillion for chip manufacturing. He envisions a world where AI reigns supreme, and he’s betting big on it. To realize…