Open Source · DeepSeek · OpenAI · Nvidia · Google · Compute · Wired
CUDA Proves Nvidia Is a Software Company
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Forgive me for starting with a cliché, a piece of finance jargon that has recently slipped into the tech lexicon, but the reporter is afraid the reporter must talk about “moats.” Popularized decades ago by Warren Buffett to refer to a company’s competitive advantage, the word found its way into Silicon Valley pitch decks when a memo purportedly leaked from Google, titled “We Have No Moat, and Neither Does OpenAI,” fretted that open-source AI would pillage Big Tech’s castle.
Key facts
- For example, if programmed to recognize commutativity—7×9 = 9×7—they can avoid duplicate work, reducing 81 operations to 45, nearly halving the workload
- But a GPU with nine cores can assign tasks so that each core takes a different column—one from 1×1 to 1×9, another from 2×1 to 2×9, and so on—for a ninefold speed gain
- Let’s say they task a machine with filling out a 9×9 multiplication table
- But even a kitchen with 30 grilling stations won’t run any faster without a capable head chef deftly assigning tasks—as CUDA does for GPU cores
Summary
A few years on, the castle walls remain safe. The company that does have a moat is Nvidia. CUDA technically stands for Compute Unified Device Architecture, but much like laser or scuba, no one bothers to expand the acronym; they say “KOO-duh.” So what is this all-important treasure good for? Here’s a simple example. For example, if programmed to recognize commutativity—7×9 = 9×7—they can avoid duplicate work, reducing 81 operations to 45, nearly halving the workload.