Exploring the Origins and Growth of a Key Tech Company

2min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

Nvidia's business model revolves around designing semiconductor chips rather than manufacturing them, with production being handled by companies such as TSMC and Samsung. The company's foundation was laid in 1992 when Jensen Huang and two colleagues conceptualized specialized chips for enhancing 3D graphics in video games. This innovative approach not only transformed the gaming experience but also turned out to be highly profitable. Researchers and historians, such as David Rosenthal, have explored Nvidia's evolution by examining publicly available resources, indicating that the company's legacy is rooted in community knowledge rather than insider communications.

At the core of most of the electronics we use today are some very tiny, very powerful chips. Semiconductor chips. And they are mighty: they help power our phones, laptops, and cars. They enable advances in healthcare, military systems, transportation, and clean energy. And they're also critical for artificial intelligence, providing the hardware needed to train complex machine learning.

On today's episode, we're bringing you two stories from our daily show The Indicator, diving into the two most important semiconductor chip companies, which have transformed the industry over the past 40 years.

First, we trace NVIDIA's journey from making niche graphics cards for gaming to making the most advanced chips in the world — and briefly becoming the world's biggest company. Next, we see how the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company's decision to manufacture chips for its competition instead of itself flipped the entire industry on its head, and moved the vast majority of the world's advanced chip production to Taiwan.

Help support Planet Money and hear our bonus episode about NVIDIA by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy