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NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang encourages Caltech graduates to embrace unconventional paths
NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang gave an inspiring keynote speech to Caltech graduates on Friday, urging them to pursue their craft with dedication and resilience and to view setbacks as new opportunities. This message was conveyed during the ceremony held in Pasadena, California, according to the NVIDIA Blog.
Encourage unconventional thinking
Huang, trading in his signature leather jacket for black and yellow academic robes, encouraged the nearly 600 graduates to believe in something unconventional and unexplored, but also to ensure their activities were informed and reasoned. “You might find your GPU. You may find your CUDA. You may find your AI generative. You might find your NVIDIA,” she said.
The evolution of information technology
Addressing the graduates, Huang recounted the decades-long evolution of the IT industry, underlining the crucial moment of AI transformation. “Computers today are the most important tool of knowledge and it is fundamental to every single industry in every field of science,” she noted. Huang stressed the importance of understanding current developments as they enter the industry.
NVIDIA’s bet on deep learning
Huang recounted how over ten years ago NVIDIA, then a small company, bet on deep learning, investing billions of dollars and years of engineering resources to reinvent every level of processing. “No one knew how far deep learning could scale, and if we didn’t build it, we would never know,” he noted, referencing the famous line from Field of Dreams: “If we don’t build it, they can “. do not come.”
Robotics and future opportunities
Looking ahead, Huang highlighted robotics as the next wave of artificial intelligence, a field where NVIDIA’s journey has been marked by a series of setbacks. He reflected on a time when NVIDIA faced significant challenges, pushing the company to look for untapped areas, what he calls “zero billion-dollar markets.”
“With no more markets to address, we decided to build something where we are sure there are no customers,” Huang said. This approach led NVIDIA to build the first robotic computer, developing a deep learning algorithm, which has since paved the way for the company’s current advances in artificial intelligence.
Resilience and agility
Huang emphasized resilience and agility as essential traits that strengthen character. “One setback after another, we shook it off and skated towards the next opportunity. Each time we acquire skills and strengthen our character,” she said. “Nowadays, any setback that comes our way doesn’t feel like an opportunity.”
He also referenced a personal experience from his travels in Japan, where observing a gardener’s dedication to Kyoto’s famous moss garden taught him the value of prioritizing one’s life’s work.
“Prioritize your life,” concluded Huang, “and you will have plenty of time to do the important things.”
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