OpenAI and its boss Sam Altman have been the darlings of Tech since the release of ChatGPT at the end of 2022. The entrepreneur's strategy has been put under the microscope, both by his allies and his rivals. For several months, rumors have been rife about its interest in the hardware, and not just software, counterpart of artificial intelligence. Dedicated electronic device, specialized chip, humanoid robot… Several ideas have been attributed to it.
A desire to revolutionize the semiconductor industry
This February 9, the Wall Street Journal reports that its big project would be the creation of a global network for manufacturing chips for AI. It would require an investment of between 5,000 and 7,000 billion dollars. A trifle. The American media is aware of the enormity of this sum, recalling that the entire semiconductor industry currently only weighs 527 billion dollars. But his sources are clear: Altman would try to get this project off the ground.
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The objective would be to strongly develop chip production capacity, which is today a limiting factor in the expansion of the capabilities of large language models. Never mind the environmental considerations, or the fact that creating ever more massive models (and therefore requiring ever more power) will not necessarily always be the best approach for AI.
A sector that has become strategic for States
Sam Altman would have approached investors from the United Arab States, the billionaire Masayoshi Son (boss of Softbank and not always wise investor), and the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world leader in the manufacturing of integrated circuits.
Would it still be able to raise a sum exceeding the annual GDP of France? Nothing is less sure. The government of UNITED STATES just announced a major investment of 5 billion dollars in its electronics industry, now considered a strategic issue facing the China. It seems inconceivable that a start-up, however popular it may be, could raise 1000 times more funds to fundamentally revolutionize this sector, especially since it is today seen as eminently strategic.
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