The AI hardware race is heating up, and NVIDIA is still far ahead. What will it take to close the gap? In this episode, Dylan Patel (Founder & CEO, SemiAnalysis) joins Erin Price-Wright (General Partner, a16z), Guido Appenzeller (Partner, a16z), and host Erik Torenberg to break down the state of AI chips, data centers, and infrastructure strategy. We discuss: - Why simply copying NVIDIA won’t work, and what it takes to beat them - How custom silicon from Google, Amazon, and Meta could reshape the market - T ...

Market Overview - The market experienced a strong upward trend, with the Shanghai Composite Index breaking the high point from October 8 of last year, reaching a nearly four-year high [2] - The total trading volume in the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets was 2.15 trillion yuan, an increase of 269.4 billion yuan compared to the previous trading day, marking a return to above 2 trillion yuan after 114 trading days [2] Focus Stocks - Notable stocks included: - Beiwai Technology: 8 consecutive days of gains, up 10.04% [3] - Great Wall Military Industry: 10 consecutive days of gains, up 10.01% [3] - Zhongma Transmission: 11 consecutive days of gains, up 10.00% [3] - Hongtong Gas: 7 consecutive days of gains, up 10.02% [3] - Jishi Media: 8 consecutive days of gains, up 10.09% [3] - Furi Electronics: 8 consecutive days of gains, up 9.98% [3] - Haili Co.: 6 consecutive days of gains, up 10.01% [3] - Aerospace Science and Technology: 7 consecutive days of gains, up 10.03% [3] Market Trends - The market showed a mixed trend with more stocks rising than falling, with over 2,700 stocks increasing in value [3] - AI hardware stocks continued to perform well, with several stocks, including Industrial Fulian, reaching historical highs [3] - The brokerage sector saw a temporary surge, with Guosheng Financial Holdings achieving two consecutive gains [3] - The non-ferrous metal sector showed strong fluctuations, with Zijin Mining and Luoyang Molybdenum both reaching historical highs [3] - Sectors such as electronic chemicals, non-ferrous metals, and biological products led in gains, while coal, banking, ports, and logistics sectors experienced declines [3] Stock Performance - A total of 92 stocks hit the daily limit, with 24 stocks on consecutive gains and 28 stocks failing to maintain their limits, resulting in a limit-hitting rate of 77% [5] - Key stocks in focus included: - Robot concept stocks like Beiwai Technology and Zhongma Transmission [5] - Military sector stocks such as Great Wall Military Industry and Aerospace Science and Technology [5] - Local stocks from Xinjiang like Hongtong Gas [5] - Media stocks like Jishi Media and consumer electronics stocks like Furi Electronics [5]

Core Insights - The A-share market has shown strong performance, with the Shanghai Composite Index rising by 0.48% to 3683.46 points, marking a nearly four-year high [1] - The Shenzhen Component Index increased by 1.76%, and the ChiNext Index surged by 3.62%, both reaching new highs for the year [1] - The total market turnover reached 2.18 trillion yuan, an increase of 270 billion yuan compared to the previous trading day, surpassing 2 trillion yuan for the first time in 114 trading days [1] Sector Performance - Leading sectors included optical modules (CPO), copper industry, optical chips, and industrial gases, which saw significant gains [1] - AI hardware stocks continued to perform well, with companies like Industrial Fulian reaching historical highs [1] - Brokerage stocks experienced a brief surge, with Guosheng Financial Holdings achieving two consecutive trading limit ups [1] - Conversely, sectors such as coal, banking, ports, and logistics faced declines [1] - Over 2700 stocks in the market recorded gains [1]

板块方面，有色金属、PEEK材料、CPO、光刻机等板块涨幅居前，煤炭、银行、港口、物流等板块跌 幅居前。 | 1 | 881333 元器件 | | 6.90 | 1633.66 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2 | 玻璃玻纤 881094 | | 6.15 | 898.89 | | 3 | 通信设备 881338 | | 6.05 | 1995.86 | | 4 | 地面兵装 881287 | | 6.00 | 1766.10 | | 5 | 880880 近期强势 | | 5.30 | 240.01 | | б | 880793 基金减仓 | | 4.54 | 1390.21 | | 7 | 880877 户数减少 | | 4.36 | 1836.14 | | 8 | 881326 消费电子 | | 4.09 | 1553.19 | | 1 | 881389 地方性银行 | | -1.33 | 1476.38 | | 2 | 880875 中小银行 | | -1.26 | 1473.63 | | 3 | 焦炭加工 881005 | | -1.09 | 493.36 ...

Group 1 - The recent WAIC2025 event highlighted a significant trend towards AI hardware, particularly those integrated with large models, indicating their increasing maturity and quality [1] - Many vendors at the event were actively selling AI hardware, showcasing a growing market interest and consumer engagement in this sector [1] - Attendees, including industry professionals, were enthusiastic about purchasing AI hardware products, reflecting a strong demand and excitement around these technologies [1]

Super Micro Computer, Inc. SMCI will release earnings results for the fourth quarter, after the closing bell on Tuesday, Aug. 5. Analysts expect the San Jose, California-based company to report quarterly earnings at 44 cents per share, down from 62 cents per share in the year-ago period. Super Micro Computer projects to report quarterly revenue at $5.91 billion, compared to $5.31 billion a year earlier, according to data from Benzinga Pro. Read This Next: Photo via Shutterstock Loading... Super Micro Comput ...

Group 1 - The core viewpoint of the article emphasizes that AI is not just a flashy technology but is fundamentally restructuring products and user experiences [1] - The article highlights a live event featuring key figures from Plaud, Rokid, and Fuxi Technology, focusing on the underlying logic of AI hardware evolution and commercialization [2][4] - The discussion will cover how companies like Plaud and Rokid have managed to stand out in the AI hardware sector and the secrets behind the sustainable commercialization of AI hardware [4] Group 2 - The live event is scheduled for July 30, from 20:00 to 21:30, under the theme "Beyond Tools: The Underlying Logic and Breakthrough Path of AI Hardware Advancement" [2] - Key speakers include Mo Zihua, CEO of Plaud China, Duan Ran, CEO of Fuxi Technology, and Zhao Weiqi, Global Development Ecosystem Leader at Rokid [3] - Participants are encouraged to submit questions for the speakers, which will be addressed during the live session [5]

Computing Power Evolution - The industry has witnessed a dramatic growth in computing power over the past 5 decades, transitioning from early CPUs to GPUs and now specialized AI processors [4] - GPUs and accelerators have rapidly outpaced traditional CPUs in compute performance, initially driven by gaming [4] - Apple's M4 chip features a neural engine delivering 38 trillion operations per second, establishing it as the most efficient desktop SOC on the market [3] - NVIDIA's B200 delivers 20 quadrillion operations per second at low precision in AI data centers [3] Hardware and AI Development - The development of CUDA by Nvidia in 2006 enabled GPUs to handle more than just graphics, paving the way for deep learning breakthroughs [6] - The "hardware lottery" highlights that progress stems from available technology, not necessarily perfect solutions, as GPUs were adapted for neural networks [7] - As AI scales, general-purpose chips are becoming insufficient, necessitating a rethinking of the entire system [7] Efficiency and Optimization - Quantization is used to reduce the size of numbers in AI, enabling smaller, more power-efficient, and compact AI models [8][10] - Reducing the size of parameters allows for more data movement across the system per second, decreasing bottlenecks in memory and network interconnects [10][11] - Wafer Scale Engine 2 achieves similar compute performance to 200 A100 GPUs while using significantly less power (25kW vs 160kW) [12] Future Trends - Photonic computing, using light instead of electrons, promises faster data transfer, higher bandwidth, and lower energy use, which is key for AI [15] - Thermodynamic computing harnesses physical randomness for generative models, offering efficiency in creating images, audio, and molecules [16] - AI supercomputers, composed of thousands or millions of chips, are essential for breakthroughs, requiring fault tolerance and dynamic rerouting capabilities [17][20] Global Collaboration - Over a third of all US AI research involves international collaborators, highlighting the importance of global connectedness for progress [22] - The AI supply chain is complex, spanning multiple continents and involving intricate manufacturing processes [22]